Two days after securing the conviction and 20-year imprisonment of an Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) leader, Hussaini Ismaila, the Department of State Services (DSS) on Thursday in Abuja arraigned the suspected mastermind of the 2012 attack on the Deeper Life Bible Church, Okene, Kogi State, Abdulmalik Abdulazeez Obadaki.
Obadaki was brought before a Federal High Court on a six-count charge bordering on membership of a terrorist organisation, conspiracy, rendering assistance to acts of terrorism, concealment of information on terrorist activities, and escape from lawful custody.
He pleaded guilty to Count Six, which concerns his escape from custody, but pleaded not guilty to the remaining five counts.
Following his plea, the presiding judge, Justice Joyce Obehi Abdulmalik, adjourned the case to January 26, 2026, to review the facts relating to the charge he admitted to and to hear the other counts he denied. The court ordered that he be remanded in DSS custody until the next adjourned date.
Also on Thursday, the DSS arraigned a social media user, Innocent Chukwuemeka, who allegedly used his “X” handle to canvass for a coup in Nigeria. He was charged with six counts relating to false publication intended to cause public alarm and cyberstalking.
Chukwuemeka pleaded not guilty, and the court likewise adjourned his case to January 26, 2026, ordering his remand in DSS custody.
Following the 2012 Okene church attack, Obadaki was believed to have led a gang that raided five commercial banks in Uromi, Edo State, killing several people and carting away large sums of money. He was eventually tracked and arrested by security forces and detained at Kuje Prison before escaping during the July 2022 jailbreak at the Kuje Custodial Centre.
Security sources have disclosed that the suspected terrorist kingpin confessed to orchestrating the Kuje Custodial Centre jailbreak shortly after his transfer from the Kabba Custodial Centre in June 2022.
