Owo church attack: No arrest made yet, say police

The Ondo police command says no arrest has been made regarding perpetrators of the attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo.

The church was attacked by gunmen on June 4, with at least 40 people killed, while over 60 persons were injured.

On Thursday, the federal government said the attack was orchestrated by the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP).

Rauf Aregbesola, the minister of Interior, said the imprint of ISWAP was found on the scene of the attack, adding that the perpetrators will be brought to justice.

However, on Thursday, a video surfaced on social media wherein several people were seen running, with some claiming that the attackers had been apprehended and were in the palace of the Olowo of Owo.

According to the video, which has now gone viral on social media, the suspects were said to have been arrested by a joint team of operatives of the Nigerian Army, Amotekun corps and other security agencies as well as the local hunters.

The voice of a man in the video claimed that when the people heard about the news, they stormed the palace to take a look at the suspects.

But when TheCable contacted Funmilayo Odunlami, the Ondo police public relations officer, she denied the viral report and said the command is not aware of any arrest.

“We are not aware of any arrest. We are also not aware of any story. No arrest have been made,” Odunlami said repeatedly.