The Päijät-Häme District Court in Finland on Monday sentenced Simon Ekpa, the self-acclaimed Biafra agitator, to six years in prison after finding him guilty of terrorism-related offences.
Ekpa, a long-term resident of Lahti and former local councillor, was convicted on charges of participating in a terrorist organisation and publicly inciting crimes for terrorist purposes. The court also found him guilty of aggravated tax fraud.
According to the ruling, Ekpa used his large social media following to incite violence and stoke tensions in Nigeria’s South-East between August 2021 and November 2024. He was identified as an influential member of a Biafran separatist movement that set up armed groups to push for independence by force.
The court further held that he supplied weapons, explosives, and ammunition to the groups through his network of contacts and encouraged his followers on social media platform X to commit crimes in Nigeria.
Ekpa, who moved to Finland in 2007 as an athlete, denied all charges during the trial.
The verdict, however, is not final and can be appealed to a higher court.
