Operatives of the Department of State Services have arrested the alleged sixth member of the terror cell responsible for the June 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, which left over 40 worshippers dead and many others injured .
The suspect, identified as Sani Yusuf, was apprehended in the Iguosa community along the Powerline axis in Ovia North Local Government Area of Edo State, where he had reportedly been hiding for nearly four years .
According to security sources, Yusuf, described as a high-profile commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), had managed to evade arrest since the attack by relocating across states. After briefly slipping into Kano following the June 5, 2022 massacre, he eventually moved to the quiet rural community in Edo State, where he lived under the radar .
“He admitted his role in the Owo church attack, the Zuma Rock checkpoint assault which claimed the lives of five soldiers, and several ISWAP kidnap operations,” a security source disclosed .
Yusuf is also alleged to have confessed to involvement in the July 2022 attack on a military barracks in Suleja, Niger State, as well as multiple kidnapping operations in Kaduna State and surrounding areas . Sources added that he served under other ISWAP top commanders, including Abu Ikirimah, who was arrested by the DSS in 2024 .
The DSS is currently prosecuting five other suspects over the Owo church attack. They include Idris Omeiza (25), Al Qasim Idris (20), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26), Abdulhaleem Idris (25), and Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47) . The suspects are facing charges bordering on terrorism and related offences at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Court documents from the ongoing trial have revealed chilling details of how the attack was planned and executed. A DSS witness testified that the terror cell operated as a coordinated unit with a dedicated financial pipeline, with the fifth defendant allegedly acting as the group’s “banker” through multiple Point of Sale (POS) locations .
According to testimony, the planning began on May 30, 2022, at a meeting in a Kogi State secondary school, where the order was given to strike the church on a Sunday with the specific intent to “ensure that they kill the priest” . The attackers were supplied with five AK-47 rifles, 10 magazines, ammunition, and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) .
“This arrest marks a significant milestone in the pursuit of justice for the victims of the Owo church attack and the soldiers killed at the Zuma Rock checkpoint in Suleja, and underscores the relentless campaign by the DSS in the fight against terrorism,” a security source declared .
