A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced four men to death by hanging over the June 5, 2022 terrorist attack on Saint Francis Catholic Church in Ondo State.

Justice Emeka Nwite delivered the judgment on Wednesday, convicting the defendants on a nine-count terrorism charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS).

The convicted men are Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, and Abdulhaleem Idris. A fifth defendant, Momoh Otuho Abubakar, was discharged and acquitted due to insufficient evidence.

The court held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that the four convicts were involved in acts of terrorism, including conspiracy, membership of a proscribed terrorist group linked to ISWAP, kidnapping, and the killing of worshippers during the attack.

More than 40 people were killed and over 100 others injured when gunmen opened fire on worshippers during a service at the Catholic church in Owo, Ondo State.

The attack triggered nationwide outrage and renewed concerns over insecurity and attacks on religious centers in Nigeria.

During the trial, which began in August 2025, the DSS presented witnesses and tendered confessional statements admitted by the court after a trial-within-trial to determine whether the statements were voluntarily made.

One of the defendants, Omeiza, testified that he was arrested in August 2022 in Kogi State and later interrogated by DSS operatives over the church attack.

In his final address, prosecution counsel Ayodeji Adedipe urged the court to impose the maximum sentence, arguing that the evidence established the defendants’ involvement in one of the deadliest attacks on worshippers in the country’s recent history.

Defence counsel Abdullahi Muhammad had asked the court to acquit the defendants, maintaining that the prosecution failed to sufficiently establish its case.