By Pascal Ibe

Emotions by Nigerians rose higher days after the killing of Northern travelers in Edo State.

According to reports,16 northern hunters traveling to Kano were killed by vigilance group members and locals in Uromi, Edo State on 27 March 2025.

The victims were reportedly returning home from Rivers State to celebrate the end of Ramadan and Eid Kabir with their families when they were attacked.

Various northern groups, state governments, and lawmakers, among others, in separate statements, frowned at the incident, which they described as barbaric and cowardly.

However, some Nigerians have questioned the silence of northern leaders over the terror activities and killings by bandits in the southern part of the country over the years.

Regarding this, an X user, @Fagbohun_AB, claimed that no suspect has been arrested since 2022 by Nigerian agencies over the killing of many worshipers in Ondo church.

According to him, “I just Randomly remember the Killings that happened at OWO church, Ondo in 2023
I remembered the videos and pictures of people killed in the cold hands of death, blood splashed everywhere

To date, nobody has been arrested; the case has been shut down. No justice, nothing at all.

The post has garnered over 400k views and more than 8k likes, according to X analytics. Over three thousand persons have reposted the claim.

Ondo worshipers’ killing background

On 5th June 2022, over 50 persons were killed as gunmen opened fire on worshipers at the St Francis Catholic Church, Owa-luwa Street, in Owo council area of Ondo State capital.

It was gathered that gunmen suspected to be kidnappers attacked the church killing no fewer than 25 worshippers.

The bandits, numbering five, stormed the church during service and shot members.

Verification

However, a simple keyword search, showed that in August 2022, about four suspects were arrested in connection with the church killing.

According to reports, the assailants linked to the incident were arrested two months after a terror attack on the Saint Francis Catholic Church in Owo.

The ex-chief of Defence Staff, General Leo Irabor, said the attackers were arrested during joint operations involving the Armed Forces, the Department of Security Services (DSS), and the police.

Irabor said that the suspects are members of the Islamic State of West Africa (ISWAP) and are currently in Military custody.

According to him, “We have recovered the last vehicle they used for that operation, and we made some arrests, and we have also recovered some vital things which we are working on.

“A number of people have been arrested concerning the Owo issue as well as a number of equipment.”

Also, the former governor of Ondo state, Late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu confirmed the arrest of five suspected terrorists, including their lodger, that massacred the worshippers.

The post by X user stated the incident happened in 2023, whereas it was in 2022. This is an indication that the X user was Inaccurate.

Verdict

Driven by emotions, @Fagbohun_AB claimed that no suspect was arrested after the killing of many worshippers in a church in 2022. However credible reports contradicted it. Therefore, the claim is FALSE.