Two prosecution witnesses on Tuesday told a Federal High Court in Akure how gunmen and explosives were used to carry out the June 5, 2022 attack on St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, killing dozens of worshippers.
The second prosecution witness, a church member whose identity was protected, identified two of the five defendants as among those who carried out the assault.
Led in evidence by prosecuting counsel, Adedayo Adedipe (SAN), the witness, labelled SSB, pointed to Al-Qasim Idris and Abdulhaleem Idris as attackers he saw inside the church.
“We were having our normal mass when we heard a gunshot outside. Then another one, and people started running,” he told the court. “In a matter of seconds, I saw one man holding a gun. He looked around and beckoned someone behind him to come forward.”
SSB said the gunman he saw beckoning another attacker was Al-Qasim Idris, while Abdulhaleem Idris was the man he later saw carrying a bag as the attackers were leaving.
“Another man came out and started shooting at the choir gallery, while the first one was shooting at people at the lector’s seat,” he said. “We then heard explosions — one, two, three, and a fourth.
When I looked up, I saw three people. The one with a bag looked around and made a sign as if to say, ‘let us go’.”
The witness said he could not identify the person who threw the explosives but was certain about the two defendants he named.
He added that after the attackers left, he escaped through a window and saw bodies outside the church.
“There were more than 40 people killed, and many others were injured,” he said.
“The hospital was full of victims, including people whose legs were amputated. When I went back to the church, it was badly damaged and full of blood.”
The Department of State Services (DSS) is prosecuting five men — Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al-Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, Abdulhaleem Idris and Momoh Otuho Abubakar — over the attack.
A third prosecution witness, a woman identified as SSC, told the court how she survived but suffered severe injuries to her left leg after an explosive was dropped beside her.
“I was confused until an old woman beside me was killed,” she said. “We ran towards the altar and lay on the floor.
One of the gunmen asked us, ‘do you know why we are doing this?’ He dropped a dynamite beside my head and left.”
She said another worshipper asked her to shift, but her leg was still close to the explosive when it detonated.
“The dynamite exploded and my left leg was badly damaged,” she said, showing the court her injured leg.
SSC also told the court that her two-year-old cousin was killed in the attack and that she has since undergone four surgeries and skin grafts. “There is still an iron inside my leg,” she said.
She said 41 people were killed in the attack, based on figures published in a burial obituary.
Further hearing in the case continues on January 14.
