Simon Ekpa, a disciple of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and a self-acclaimed Prime Minister of the Biafra Government in Exile (BGIE), has been sentenced to six years in prison for terrorism-related crimes, including promoting violence through social media believed to have contributed to the unrest in southeastern Nigeria.
The sentencing was carried out on Monday in the Päijät-Häme district court in Finland by a three-member panel of judges who found Ekpa guilty of inciting terrorism and participating in the activities of a terrorist group aimed at actualising Biafra.
The Päijät-Häme district court also ruled that Ekpa supplied certain groups with weapons, explosives, and ammunition through his networks in the region.
The court also convicted Ekpa of aggravated tax fraud and violating the provisions of the Attorneys Act.
Recall that, in November 2024, Ekpa was detained by the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on accusations of terrorist activities in Nigeria and was later remanded into custody by the District Court of Päijät-Häme on suspicion of public incitement to commit terrorism-related crimes between 23 August 2021 and 18 November 2024.
At a preparatory hearing in late May, the prosecutor demanded a six-year prison sentence for various crimes, including participating in a terrorist organisation and tax fraud. Ekpa denied all charges but admitted to a minor tax offence.
Also, recall that President Bola Tinubu commended the Finnish authorities for arresting Ekpa last November, with the Finnish Ambassador to Nigeria stating that “Simon Ekpa has been hindering bilateral relations. The cooperation between our two countries is going very well now, and the National Security Adviser has been providing all the evidence.”
Simon Ekpa — who became active in the Biafra independence movement in 2019 — is a Nigerian Finland-based politician. In 2022, while in Finland, he declared the activation of the Biafra Government in Exile (BGIE), and in 2023, declared himself the leader and Prime Minister (BRGIE)
He is a citizen of Finland and has served as a reservist in the Finnish Army. He joined Finnish politics in 2012 and ran as a candidate in the 2017 Finnish municipal elections and was also a candidate in the 2022 Finnish county elections under the National Coalition Party of Finland.
