DSS Arrests Sixth Suspect in 2022 Owo Church Massacre

DSS Arrests Sixth Suspect in 2022 Owo Church Massacre

Operatives of the Department of State Services have arrested the sixth suspect linked to the 2022 massacre at St. Francis Catholic Church, where more than 40 worshippers were killed and dozens injured.

The suspect, identified as Sani Yusuf, is described by security sources as a high-profile commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). He was apprehended in the Iguosa community along Powerline in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of Edo State after nearly four years on the run.

Sources said Yusuf had been one of Nigeria’s most wanted fugitives since the deadly attack on the Catholic church in Owo, Ondo State.

“For years, DSS operatives have been on his trail,” a security source disclosed. “He was finally tracked and arrested quietly in the Iguosa area, where he had been hiding.”

According to intelligence findings, Yusuf fled to Kano State shortly after the Owo attack before relocating to the remote Edo community, where he allegedly lived under a false identity to evade arrest.

Investigators revealed that Yusuf has confessed to participating in the planning and execution of the Owo church massacre.

“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,” another source said.

An intelligence officer further disclosed that the suspect also confessed to involvement in the July 2022 Suleja military barracks attack and multiple kidnappings in Kaduna State and its environs.

“Yusuf told investigators he served under several ISWAP commanders, including Abu Ikirimah, who was arrested by the DSS in 2024,” the source added.

Security officials described the arrest as a major breakthrough in ongoing counterterrorism operations aimed at dismantling extremist networks responsible for attacks across the country.

“This arrest is a significant victory for national security and for the families of those who lost their lives in Owo and other ISWAP attacks,” a senior official stated. “It demonstrates the DSS’s unrelenting commitment to dismantling terrorist networks and bringing perpetrators to justice.”

The DSS is currently prosecuting five other suspects — Idris Omeiza (25), Al Qasim Idris (20), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26), Abdulhaleem Idris (25), and Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47) — for their alleged roles in the Owo church massacre.

The June 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church shocked the nation and drew widespread condemnation from both local and international communities.

The latest arrest signals renewed efforts by security agencies to ensure accountability for one of Nigeria’s most tragic acts of extremist violence in recent years.