Owo church killings: Court reserves judgment, prosecution seeks death penalty

The Federal High Court in Abuja has concluded the final arguments in the trial of five men accused in connection with the deadly terrorist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State. The court has reserved its judgment, with a date to be communicated to the parties involved.

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

The attack, which occurred on June 5, 2022, during a Sunday mass, resulted in the deaths of at least 41 worshippers and left more than 140 others injured. The incident, one of the most severe assaults on a place of worship in Nigeria's recent history, drew widespread national and international condemnation.

During the final address, the Department of State Services (DSS) counsel, Ayodeji Adedipe (SAN), urged the court to convict the defendants and impose the maximum penalty of death, citing the gravity of the alleged offense. Conversely, the defense counsel, Abdullahi Mohammad, pleaded for the discharge and acquittal of his clients, contending that the prosecution had not sufficiently established its case against them.

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Urged the court to convict the defendants and impose the maximum sentence of death because of the gravity of the offence allegedly committed.

The five defendants are Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, Abdulhaleem Idris, and Momoh Otuho Abubakar. The DSS presented 11 witnesses during the trial, which began on August 1, 2025. The court had previously admitted the defendants' confessional statements after a trial-within-trial confirmed they were made voluntarily. The attack prompted former Governor Rotimi Akeredolu to call for strengthened federal security measures in vulnerable areas.

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Prayed the court to discharge and acquit his clients, arguing that the prosecution failed to establish its case against them.