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2w ago

Nigerian Court Convicts and Sentences Four Over 2022 Owo Church Massacre

Allegations of torture and years of secret detention are likely to shape appeals and draw international scrutiny over who carried out the attack

Suspects accused of involvement in the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, appear in court for trial judgment at the Federal High Court in Abuja, Nigeria, June 3, 2026. REUTERS/Marvellous Durowaiye
Suspects accused of involvement in the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, arrive at the Federal High Court ahead of judgment in Abuja, Nigeria, June 3, 2026. REUTERS/Marvellous Durowaiye
Suspects accused of involvement in the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, speak with their lawyer at the Federal High Court ahead of judgment in Abuja, Nigeria, June 3, 2026. REUTERS/Marvellous Durowaiye
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Overview

  • A federal court in Abuja found four men guilty on a nine-count terrorism indictment and sentenced them to multiple penalties, including six death sentences each, life terms and long fixed terms in a ruling delivered Wednesday.
  • The convicted men were named in court as Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik and Abdulhaleem Idris while a fifth defendant, Momoh Otuho Abubakar, was acquitted for lack of evidence.
  • Prosecutors said the charges covered hostage-taking, kidnapping, financing of terrorism and detonating explosives that killed dozens at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo on June 5, 2022.
  • Defence lawyers say the men were held in secret for years and were tortured in custody; their legal team has announced plans to appeal the convictions, which will draw on those due-process claims.
  • Attribution of the attack remains unresolved with officials citing links to a cell called "Al Shabaab" and earlier mentions of ISWAP while no external group claimed responsibility, and many suspects linked to the case remain at large as security concerns grow in western Nigeria.