By David AFOLABI
It was judgment day, Wednesday, for four of the five men prosecuted by the Department of State Services (DSS) over their involvement in the June 5, 2022, attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State.
They were convicted and sentenced to death by the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Justice Emeka Nwite ordered that the four convicts – Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, and Abdulhaleem Idris – die by hanging.
The fifth defendant, Momoh Otuho Abubakar, was discharged and acquitted on all nine counts contained in the charge.
Justice Nwite, who held that the prosecution proved its case against the four defendants beyond a reasonable doubt, said the evidence before the court showed that the convicts belonged to and actively participated in the activities of the Al-Shabab terrorist group, including the attack on the Owo church.
The attack, which occurred during a church service, left several worshippers dead and many others injured. It drew national and international condemnation.
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During the trial, the prosecution called 11 witnesses and tendered 23 documents, all of which were admitted in evidence.
The five defendants testified in their own defence and did not call additional witnesses.
Reviewing the evidence, Justice Nwite found that the four convicts joined the proscribed Al-Shabab terrorist group in 2021 through one Odoba.
The judge also found that the convicts held a meeting at Government High School, Ogaminana, in Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State, where the decision to attack the Owo church was taken.
He further found that the operation was perfected at a location near Owo in Ondo State.
Justice Nwite held that the prosecution established beyond a reasonable doubt that the four convicts were involved in the Owo church attack in which 40 worshippers were killed and more than 100 others were injured.
The judge said the evidence against the convicts was credible, cogent, positive, verifiable and compelling enough to warrant their conviction.
He rejected the convicts’ claim that their statements were obtained under duress and inducement, noting that their signatures and thumbprints on the statements did not support that assertion.
Justice Nwite subsequently sentenced the convicts to 20 years imprisonment each on counts one, two and three, relating to membership of a terrorist group, attendance at terrorist meetings and conspiracy. The judge also sentenced the four convicts to death by hanging on counts four to nine, relating to hostage-taking, possession of dangerous arms, terrorism financing, use of explosive devices in public places, and causing bodily harm to citizens, among others
