Abuja: A nurse from the Ondo State Hospital Management Board took the stand on Wednesday, detailing the life-altering injuries she sustained during the June 5, 2022, terrorist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the nurse, identified only as ‘SSD’ for security reasons, served as the Department of State Services (DSS)’s fourth prosecution witness in the ongoing trial before Justice Emeka Nwite at the Federal High Court in Abuja. SSD recounted how a dynamite blast during the church’s Pentecost Sunday service resulted in the loss of both her legs and her left eye. When the attack began, SSD was among many congregants who sought refuge at the church altar, hoping to escape the gunfire.
As the attack intensified, SSD described feeling a powerful explosion that left her unable to see or move properly. “I touched my eyes, everywhere was bloody. I touched my leg, I could not feel anything,” she recounted, explaining the severity of her injuries. SSD was eventually transported to the hospital, where she lost her left eye and had both legs amputated above the knees.
Her husband, referred to as ‘SSE’, also testified as the fifth prosecution witness. He described the chaotic scene inside the church, where gunmen initially fired through windows before entering the building and throwing explosives among the congregants. SSE detailed his desperate search for his family amidst the carnage and the heartbreaking realization that his severely injured wife was among the victims.
SSE further testified that the Ondo State Government had promised his wife prosthetic legs, but this pledge went unfulfilled due to administrative changes. The prosecution’s case is part of a broader terrorism trial involving five defendants, with Justice Nwite adjourning proceedings until February 10 and 11 for further testimony.