Residents, survivors, and families of victims of the 2012 attack on the Deeper Life Bible Church in Otite, near Okene in Kogi State, have expressed appreciation to the Department of State Security (DSS) over the re-arrest and prosecution of Abdulmalik Abdulazeez Obadaki, alleged to be the mastermind of the deadly assault.
The community welcomed what they described as renewed urgency by the secret police under its current leadership, saying the swift arraignment of the suspect has restored their confidence in the justice process and raised hopes that the long-delayed case will finally be concluded.
The tragic incident occurred on August 7, 2012, when gunmen stormed a Bible study session at the church. Fifteen worshippers were killed on the spot, while four others later died from injuries, bringing the death toll to 19.
Dozens of congregants were also wounded in the attack, which was believed to have been carried out by members of the Ansaru terrorist group.
Obadaki was later linked to a series of violent crimes, including coordinated raids on five commercial banks in Uromi, Edo State, during which several people were reportedly killed and large sums of money stolen.
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He was eventually arrested by security operatives and remanded at the Kuje Custodial Centre in Abuja. However, he escaped during the jailbreak at the facility in July 2022, remaining at large until recently.
On November 15, 2025, the DSS announced that it had recaptured the fugitive Ansaru leader.
Six days later, he was brought before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja to face a six-count charge bordering on terrorism, conspiracy, aiding attacks, concealment of information, and escape from lawful custody.
At the arraignment, Obadaki pleaded guilty only to count six, which relates to his escape from custody, while denying the other allegations.
The trial judge adjourned the matter to January 26, 2026, and ordered that the defendant be remanded in DSS custody pending the next hearing.
Speaking after the development, residents of Otite said they were relieved that the suspect had been recaptured and promptly charged, noting that the move had rekindled hope for justice more than a decade after the tragedy.
They said the renewed drive by the DSS showed that “the DSS has indeed changed.”
One of the community leaders said: “In fact, before now, we had given up on ever getting justice. And you won’t blame us. After attacking the Deeper Life Church in out town, they moved to attack banks in Uromi. We, therefore, were happy to hear that he was arrested.
“The long years this Obadaki spent without trial began to sow seeds of doubt in our hearts. If you Google Otite today, what you’ll see is that terrorists attacked our Deeper Life Bible Church.
“We still live with the scars of that attack. The next thing we heard in 2022 was that he escaped during the Kuje jail break.
“Suddenly, like a bolt from the blues, we heard in mid -November that the DSS recaptured him. Given all that we have heard concerning the new DSS leadership, and the way the new leadership quickly arraigned him, out cautious optimism has since given way to rekindled faith and hope that true change has come. Somehow, we believe that things will be different this time around, and we would get justice from our courts.”
