Owo Massacre: Prosecution seeks death penalty for suspects

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Tuesday reserved judgment in the trial of five men accused of involvement in the June 5, 2022, terrorist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State, in which 41 worshippers were killed.

The presiding judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, fixed judgment for a date to be communicated to the parties after counsel to the prosecution and defence adopted their final written addresses.

The judge informed lawyers that the court would notify them once the judgment was ready, adding that the notice could come within 24 hours.

During his final address, counsel to the Department of State Services, Ayodeji Adedipe (SAN), urged the court to convict the defendants and impose the maximum sentence of death because of the gravity of the offence allegedly committed.

Counsel to the defendants, Abdullahi Mohammad, however, prayed the court to discharge and acquit his clients, arguing that the prosecution failed to establish its case against them.

The defendants are Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, Abdulhaleem Idris and Momoh Otuho Abubakar.

The DSS had called 11 witnesses in the trial, which commenced on August 1, 2025, to prove the allegations against the suspects.

The court had earlier admitted the defendants’ confessional statements after conducting a trial-within-trial to determine whether the statements were voluntarily made.

More than 140 persons were also injured in the attack, while the DSS had sought and obtained an accelerated hearing of the case at the commencement of the trial.