The news says: Four years after the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State, the Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced four members of the Al-Shabaab terrorist group to death by hanging. The attack left more than 40 worshippers dead and over 100 others injured.
Who are the people involved in this judgment? The convicts: Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza (25), Al Qasim Idris (20), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26), and Abdulhaleem Idris (25). The acquitted: Momoh Abubakar (47) – discharged due to insufficient evidence. The judge: Justice Emeka Nwite. The prosecution: Department of State Services (DSS) on behalf of the Federal Government. The victims: 40+ deceased worshippers, over 100 injured, and the Catholic Diocese of Ondo. The commentators: Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Olowo of Owo Oba Ajibade Ogunoye, and Bishop Jude Arogundade.
Where did this happen? The attack happened at St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State. The trial took place at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The terrorist cell operated from Kogi State.
What were they convicted of? A nine-count terrorism charge. The court found they were principal members of an Al-Shabaab terrorist cell operating in Kogi State. They actively participated in the church assault during a Pentecost service. They used improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and AK-47 rifles.
When did this happen? The attack was on June 5, 2022. The judgment was delivered on Wednesday, June 3, 2026 – just two days before the fourth anniversary of the attack.
Why did it take four years to get a conviction? The prosecution called 11 witnesses and tendered 23 exhibits, including confessional statements and a digital forensic examination report. A Technophone device containing communications among the defendants before and after the attack was key evidence. One witness was a Catholic priest who survived the attack and gave a chilling account of three explosive devices detonated inside the church.
How was the fifth defendant acquitted? Momoh Abubakar, 47, was discharged and acquitted because the prosecution could not provide sufficient evidence linking him to the attack.
4 things you must know about this death sentence.
- The sentence comes exactly four years after the attack – justice delayed, but not denied. The attack was on June 5, 2022. The judgment was on June 3, 2026. Four years. Families of the 40+ deceased have waited four years for this moment. Bishop Arogundade noted that one seminarian with him lost both parents – father and mother killed in the attack. That seminarian has waited four years. The delay does not erase the pain. But the conviction acknowledges that the state remembers.
- The convicts were members of an Al-Shabaab cell operating from Kogi State – not from Ondo. This is crucial. The terrorists travelled from Kogi State to Ondo State to attack a church. They were not local. They were organised. They had a cell, communications, explosives, and rifles. The attack was not random. It was planned, coordinated, and carried out by a network. The convictions disrupt that network – but only partly.
- The prosecution used digital forensics – a Technophone device with communications before and after the attack. This is a significant development in Nigerian terrorism prosecutions. Confessional statements alone are sometimes coerced. But digital evidence – messages, call logs, location data – is harder to fake. The court admitted a digital forensic examination report. That sets a precedent. Future terrorism cases will rely more on technology and less on witness testimony.
- The Olowo of Owo made a powerful point: if past kidnapping and terrorism cases had been properly prosecuted, Nigeria would have less insecurity today. Oba Ajibade Ogunoye said: “If cases like this had been properly handled in the past, and accused persons were consistently convicted, Nigeria would have significantly reduced the wave of kidnapping and insecurity.” That is a truth many avoid. Impunity breeds crime. When terrorists and kidnappers believe they will not be caught – or if caught, not convicted – they continue. The Owo conviction is a model. But it is one case. Hundreds of others remain unsolved.
How this affects Nigerians and Nigeria’s counter-terrorism efforts.
i. It sends a message that terrorists can be caught, prosecuted, and sentenced to death. For four years, families wondered if anyone would pay for the Owo massacre. Now, four men face execution. That deters potential attackers – not completely, but significantly. The message is: you may kill, but you will not escape justice forever.
ii. It exposes the weakness of the acquittal – one suspect walked free due to insufficient evidence. Momoh Abubakar is a free man. If he was involved, justice failed. If he was innocent, the system worked. But the public will never know. The prosecution could not prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. That is the standard – but it also means a possible conspirator is free.
iii. It highlights the need for faster terrorism trials. Four years is too long. While the trial moved forward, families mourned. Witnesses aged. Evidence risked degradation. Nigeria needs special terrorism courts with dedicated judges, faster procedures, and witness protection. The Owo case should not be the exception. It should be the norm.
iv. It does not bring back the dead – but it closes a chapter for the living. Bishop Arogundade said it best: “The law may have taken its course, but we are left to continue to nurse the wounds.” No sentence – not even death – restores a parent, a spouse, or a child. But closure matters. Knowing that the state acted, that the killers were identified and punished, allows survivors to begin healing.
Advice from this analyst.
- To the Federal Government and DSS: replicate this model. The Owo prosecution worked because of 11 witnesses, 23 exhibits, and digital forensics. Apply the same resources to other major terrorism and kidnapping cases. Create a dedicated terrorism prosecution unit. Publish results. Impunity ends when accountability becomes predictable.
- To the judiciary: Justice Nwite set an example. He weighed evidence carefully – convicting four, acquitting one. That is how courts should work. Other judges should follow: rely on digital evidence, protect witnesses, deliver judgments within reasonable time. The Owo case shows it can be done.
- To Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and the Olowo of Owo: you have welcomed the judgment. Now use it. Push for a memorial for the 40+ victims. Support the seminarian who lost both parents. Ensure that Owo is not forgotten after the news cycle ends. Justice includes remembrance.
- To the Nigerian public: follow this case to execution. Death sentences in Nigeria are often commuted or delayed indefinitely. Hold the authorities accountable. The convicts were sentenced to death by hanging. That sentence must be carried out – or if not, the public deserves an explanation. A sentence without execution is not justice. It is theatre.
Rhetorical question for you.
If four terrorists can be convicted and sentenced to death four years after killing 40+ worshippers in Owo, why have the kidnappers who abducted schoolchildren in Oyo State – and beheaded a mathematics teacher – not been caught, tried, or convicted?
The answer is uncomfortable. Because some cases receive political will. Others do not. Owo got attention because 40 people died in a church. The world was watching. The school abductions happen in rural areas. The world looks away. That is not justice. That is selective attention. Every victim deserves the same pursuit of justice – whether killed in a church or beheaded in a forest.
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Akahi News reports that four years after the Owo church massacre, four terrorists have been sentenced to death. Forty people died. One hundred were injured. One seminarian lost both parents. The judge convicted four. One walked free. The Olowo of Owo said consistent convictions would reduce insecurity. Bishop Arogundade said the wound remains. Both are right. The sentence is a milestone. But it is not the finish line. The death penalty must be carried out – or explained. Other terrorists must be hunted with the same vigour. And Nigeria must ask: why did it take four years? And how many Owo-style attacks are still unpunished? The answer will determine whether this judgment is a turning point – or just another headline.