A Finnish court has sentenced Simon Ekpa, a known Biafra agitator, to six years in prison for terrorism offences and other crimes.
The Päijät-Häme District Court delivered the judgment on Monday, September 1, after finding the 40-year-old guilty of supporting terrorist groups, inciting the public to commit crimes for terrorist purposes, aggravated tax fraud, and breaching the Lawyers Act.
Court records revealed that between August 2021 and November 2024, Ekpa used social media to push for the independence of the Biafra region through illegal means. Judges held that he exploited divisions within the separatist movement to position himself as a key figure.
The court further found that he helped organise the activities of separatist groups into a more structured movement. Armed groups under the campaign were classified as terrorist organisations, with Ekpa accused of supplying them with weapons, explosives, and ammunition through his network.
He was also said to have urged his followers on X (formerly Twitter) to commit crimes in Nigeria.
The trial ran from May 30 to June 25, 2025, across 12 sittings, before a three-judge panel that reached a unanimous decision.
Ekpa, a former municipal politician in Lahti, denied all charges.
His sentencing marks a major turn in the story of a man who rose to prominence after taking over “sit-at-home” directives in Nigeria’s South-East following the detention of IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
