Owo church attack: Convicts would’ve escaped death sentence under Buhari — Ndi Kato

Political analyst and former member of Peter Obi’s presidential campaign council, Ndi Kato, has reacted to the death sentence handed down to four persons convicted for the June 5, 2022, attack on Saint Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.

In a post on X, Kato suggested that the convicts would have received a lighter punishment if former late President Muhammadu Buhari were still in office.

“They would have gotten 5-year prison sentences if Buhari were still in power,” she wrote.

Kato’s comment followed Wednesday’s judgment by Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja, who sentenced four defendants to death by hanging after finding them guilty on a nine-count terrorism charge brought by the Department of State Services, DSS.

The convicts, Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik and Abdulhaleem Idris, were found guilty of offences including membership of a proscribed terrorist group, conspiracy to commit terrorism, kidnapping, hostage-taking and the killing of worshippers during the attack.

Justice Nwite held that the prosecution proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted the defendants on all nine counts.

A fifth defendant, Momoh Otuho Abubakar, was discharged and acquitted.

The Owo church attack, which occurred during a Sunday service at Saint Francis Catholic Church, left more than 40 worshippers dead and over 100 others injured, sparking nationwide outrage and calls for justice.