An officer of the Ondo State Security Network Agency, Amotekun, has told the Federal High Court in Abuja that he engaged in gun battle with one of the attackers during the June 5, 2022 massacre at St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, and later identified the man in court as the second defendant.
The witness, code-named SSG, an Assistant Commander with Amotekun and a resident of Owo, said he and his team encountered the fleeing attackers in the bush shortly after the church shooting, following intelligence from eyewitnesses.
According to SSG, he was initially responding to a separate kidnapping incident at Shagari village in Owo when he received a call from his commander to abort the mission because an attack had just occurred at St. Francis Catholic Church.
On arrival at the church, SSG said he saw spent AK-47 shells scattered on the ground, and inside the building, he met lifeless bodies of men, women and children, as well as several injured worshippers.
The witness, code-named SSG, said he and his team tracked the fleeing assailants into the bush after receiving intelligence that they escaped in a blue Nissan vehicle.
He told the court that the car, later found abandoned with registration number AKR 895 AG, was traced from the church area towards the Achievers University axis in Owo.
SSG said that while following footprints into a cocoa farm, he suddenly saw the muzzle of an AK-47 pointed at him. As he attempted to respond with his pump-action rifle, he realised it was on safety mode. Once disengaged, a gunfight broke out.
During the exchange, the attackers fled, but one of them shot and killed the hunter assisting the security team.
SSG was asked in court to identify the person he saw during the shootout. He pointed at the second defendant and reaffirmed his identification during cross-examination.
This is the second time the second defendant has been identified as the alleged assailant in the matter.
The witness said the suspect was later arrested through the joint efforts of the Police, civil defence, the State Security Service, SSS and other security agencies.
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The witness also identified photographs of the recovered vehicle and told the court that the car is still in the custody of security agencies.
Earlier, a pathologist, code-named SSF, testified that he conducted post-mortem examinations on victims of the Owo church attack in June 2022.
He said he was invited by the Ondo State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Awo Ajaka, and carried out the autopsies in Owo.
SSF told the court that all the bodies examined showed multiple gunshot injuries from firearms fired from different directions, leading to massive internal bleeding and death.
He identified several victims by name and body numbers in the forensic report tendered in evidence, and said the original copy was submitted to the Ondo State Government.
The court however upheld the prosecution’s objection, to a question by the defense team, if the witness can determine the exact type of gun or bullets used, explaining that he is a pathologist and not a ballistic expert.
The case was adjourned to Wednesday, for continuation of trial.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
