A survivor of the June 5, 2022, Owo church attack told the Federal High Court in Abuja how the deadly assault left her without both legs and her left eye, a prosecution witness said on Wednesday, January 14, 2026. The testimony came during the terrorism trial of five men accused of planning and carrying out the massacre at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.
The witness, identified only as SSD, a nurse and resident of Owo, described the panic during the Pentecost Sunday service when gunshots first sounded outside the church. At first, she thought the noise was celebratory firecrackers, but it soon became clear something was wrong.
“I ran to the altar to lie down. Then the gunshots continued sporadically… I touched my eyes, everywhere was bloody … I touched my legs, I couldn’t feel anything…” she said in court.
SSD said she was pulled from the rubble and rushed to a hospital where doctors amputated both her legs above the knee and removed her left eye. She now uses a wheelchair and a prosthetic eye. She said she spent more than five months in medical care before being discharged.
The witness also told the court that 41 members of the congregation died in the attack and many others were wounded.
After SSD’s testimony, her husband, identified as SSE, also testified, recalling his frantic search through bodies in the church to locate his missing family members. He said the attackers used both guns and explosive devices inside the crowded building.
SSE said he signed for his wife’s surgical amputation at the hospital and later learned she had lost her eye when it was discovered to be ruptured.
He told the court that the then Ondo State government had promised artificial legs for his wife, but they were not delivered before that administration left office, and the current government has not taken action on the promise.
The five men on trial — Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza (25), Al Qasim Idris (20), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26), Abdulhaleem Idris (25) and Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47) — are charged with nine counts of terrorism over their alleged roles in the attack. All have pleaded not guilty to the charges brought by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Justice Emeka Nwite accepted the testimonies of both SSD and SSE into evidence and adjourned the trial to February 10 and 11, 2026, when more DSS witnesses and evidence are expected to be heard.
The Owo church attack remains one of the most shocking terror incidents in Nigeria’s recent history, leaving deep scars on the community and raising ongoing calls for justice and improved security measures to protect places of worship.
