Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested the sixth suspect allegedly involved in the 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, which claimed over 40 lives and left scores injured.
The DSS is currently prosecuting five individuals — Idris Omeiza (25), Al Qasim Idris (20), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26), Abdulhaleem Idris (25), and Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47) for alleged acts of terrorism.
For nearly four years, the sixth suspect evaded arrest, making him one of Nigeria’s most wanted fugitives. A security source said DSS operatives, who had been tracking him for years, apprehended the suspect, identified as Sani Yusuf, in the Iguosa community along Powerline in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of Edo State.
Yusuf, described as a high-ranking commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), reportedly fled to Kano after the Owo church attack before relocating to Edo State.
The source added that Yusuf has confessed to planning and executing the Owo church attack, as well as other ISWAP operations, including the July 2022 assault on Suleja military barracks and kidnappings in Kaduna State and surrounding areas.
“He admitted his role in the Owo church attack, the Zuma Rock checkpoint assault, which claimed five soldiers, and several ISWAP kidnapping operations,” the source said.
Another source disclosed that Yusuf served under other ISWAP commanders, including Abu Ikirimah, who was arrested by the DSS in 2024.
“This arrest marks a major milestone in the pursuit of justice for the victims of the Owo church attack and the soldiers killed at Zuma Rock,” the source said. “It also underscores the DSS’s relentless campaign against terrorism.”
