Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested a suspect linked to the attack on a church in Kogi State.
The suspect, identified as Shafiu Usman, is alleged to have masterminded the deadly 2025 assault on the First ECWA Church in Ayetoro Kiri, Kabba/Bunu Local Government Area of the North-Central state.
A source within the DSS confirmed the arrest to Channels Television via telephone on Friday but declined to disclose further details regarding the location or timing of the apprehension.
READ ALSO: DSS Captures Sixth Suspect In Owo Church Attack
Gunmen suspected to be terrorists reportedly stormed the First Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) on December 14, 2025.
The attack occurred during a worship service, with the assailants firing indiscriminately, triggering panic among congregants.
Eyewitnesses recounted that the gunmen struck while the service was ongoing, forcing many worshippers to flee, while an unspecified number were abducted and taken through nearby bush paths.
The incident left the community in fear and confusion as residents scrambled for safety amid gunfire.
Owo Church Attack
The arrest comes days after the secret service announced the capture of a “high-profile commander” of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) connected to the June 5, 2022, attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.
The suspect, Sani Yusuf, is the sixth individual detained over the attack, which claimed the lives of more than 40 worshippers and left several others injured.
The DSS is currently prosecuting five other suspects — Idris Omeiza (25), Al Qasim Idris (20), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26), Abdulhaleem Idris (25), and Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47) — for allegedly orchestrating the massacre.
According to a security source, Yusuf was apprehended in the Iguosa community along Powerline in Ovia North-East, Edo State.
He was reportedly associated with other senior ISWAP commanders, including Abu Ikirimah, who was arrested by the DSS in 2024.
The development marks the second reported church attack in Okun land in recent weeks.
On November 30, armed men invaded a Cherubim and Seraphim Church in Ejiba, Yagba West Local Government Area, abducting a cleric identified as Orlando and about 13 worshippers during a service.