A FEDERAL High Court in Abuja has sentenced four men to death by hanging over their involvement in the June 5, 2022, attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State.
The presiding judge, Emeka Nwite, on Wednesday, June 3, found the defendants guilty on all nine counts of terrorism-related charges preferred against them.
However, the fifth defendant was discharged and acquitted.
The convicts — Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza (25), Al Qasim Idris (20), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26), and Abdulhaleem Idris (25) — were sentenced to death by hanging, while Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47) walked free after being cleared of the charges.
The ICIR reports that the attack left more than 40 worshippers dead and several others injured when gunmen stormed the church during Sunday service and opened fire.
The incident immediately triggered nationwide outrage.
Following the incident, security agencies launched investigations that later led to the arrest of five suspects in connection with the attack. The Federal Government subsequently filed terrorism charges against them before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The government accused them of belonging to Al-Shabaab’s Kogi State cell and using Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and AK-47 rifles during the attack.
They applied for bail during their arraignment, pleading with the court to order their release from the custody of the State Security Service (SSS),
However, the court rejected the application, ruling that the offences were capital in nature and posed serious security concerns.
The prosecution, led by Ayodeji Adedipe, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), maintained throughout the trial that the defendants were directly involved in planning and executing the attack.
After the conclusion of hearings, the court directed both parties to submit final written addresses.
On May 26, Nwite subsequently reserved judgment, after lawyers for the prosecution and defence adopted their final written addresses.
While adopting his final address, the prosecution counsel, Ayodeji Adedipe, urged the court to convict the defendants and impose the maximum penalty of death, citing the gravity of the alleged offence.
But the defence counsel, Abdullahi Mohammad, urged the court to discharge and acquit his clients, arguing that the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.
The court subsequently convicted four of the defendants and sentenced them to death by hanging, while acquitting the fifth.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M