A Finnish court delivered a significant blow to the Biafran separatist movement on Monday when the Päijät-Häme District Court sentenced Simon Ekpa to six years in prison for terrorism-related offences.
The 40-year-old Nigerian-born Finnish citizen, who previously served as a municipal politician in Lahti, was convicted on multiple serious charges that paint a picture of systematic involvement in terrorist activities spanning over three years.
The court’s comprehensive judgment revealed that Ekpa faced convictions for participation in terrorist organization activities, incitement to commit crimes for terrorist purposes, aggravated tax fraud, and violations of the Lawyers Act.
Between August 2021 and November 2024, Ekpa orchestrated an extensive online campaign designed to promote Biafran independence through illegal means, according to court documents.
The judgment specifically highlighted how “he used social media to gain a politically influential position and took advantage of the confusion within a key separatist movement in Nigeria to play a significant role in it.”
The court’s investigation uncovered Ekpa’s instrumental role in transforming the separatist movement into a more organized and dangerous structure through collaboration with other activists.
Evidence presented during the trial revealed that armed groups established under this movement were classified as terrorist organizations, marking a significant escalation from political advocacy to violent extremism.
Perhaps most concerning to security experts, the court found that “Ekpa equipped the groups with weapons, explosives, and ammunition through his contact network,” while simultaneously using social media platform X to “urge and entice his followers to commit crimes in Nigeria.”
