Owo church attack: How I was arrested by DSS ― Suspect

One of the five persons arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) over the June 5, 2022, attack on the St. Francis Catholic Church in the Owo area of Ondo State has disclosed how he was arrested by the secret police.

The suspect disclosed this at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday, March 4, 2026.

Over 40 worshippers were killed during the terror attack on the church, while over 140 others suffered various injuries.

The DSS called 11 witnesses to establish the allegations against the defendants in the trial that began on August 1, 2025.

The court admitted the confessional statements of the defendants following the conclusion of the trial- within-trial conducted to establish that the witnesses’ statement was voluntarily given.

The five defendants are Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza (25 years), Al Qasim Idris (20 years), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26 years), Abdulhaleem Idris (25 years), and Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47 years).

Omeiza, who claimed to be an auxiliary nurse, told the court that he was arrested on August 1, 2022, alongside two other young men, identified as Hauwa and Yusuf, in the same house.

He said: “I normally wake up in the morning to read my book. As I was reading, I looked at the clock and it was 2:26 a.m.

“Suddenly, I heard noises outside. I then dropped the book I was reading, opened my window, to see what was going on.

“I saw a group of people wearing all black clothes with a cover on their faces. They forced open the door and entered.

“They arrested two men from the room opposite mine. I gave them the men’s names as Awal and Yusuf.”

DSS arrests sixth suspect in Owo Church attack

The suspect told that court that it was at the DSS facility in Lokoja, the capital of Kogi State, that he met Abubakar, who had also been arrested by DSS operatives.

At the DSS office in Lokoja, Omeiza said the four of them were kept in a room where information in respect of their names, schools attended, their work, and their father’s name was obtained and recorded.

The following day, said the defendant, he volunteered statement and was in detention till August 18, 2022, when he got to know that his elder brother was also arrested.

He further told the court that before August 18, when they were moved to Ondo State, the DSS didn’t say anything relating to the Owo Catholic Church attack and membership of ISWAP or any other terror organisation to him.

At the Ondo State DSS headquarters office, Omeiza disclosed that he was detained alongside his elder brother in the same room where interrogators questioned them about the attack on the Catholic Church.

The presiding judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, adjourned the matter until March 6, 2026, for the continuation of defence.

The Star