Simon Ekpa appeals terrorism conviction as Finnish prosecutor seeks longer jail term

 Simon Ekpa, the Biafra nation crusader, has approached a
Finnish court to appeal his terrorism conviction and sentence.

 

According to BBC Pidgin, the Finnish prosecutor handling his
case is, however, demanding a longer prison sentence, arguing that the six-year
jail term is not enough for terrorism charges.

The Finnish court of appeal is set to hear the appeal in the
next three weeks.

In November 2024, Ekpa was arrested by law enforcement in
Finland.

He was later charged to court for inciting terrorism and
participating in the activities of a terrorist group.

In September 2025, the Päijät-Häme district court in Finland
sentenced Ekpa to six years in prison for terrorism offences.

The district court found him guilty of inciting terrorism
and participating in the activities of a terrorist group.

The court said the pro-Biafra agitator had used his
“significant social media following” to stoke tensions in Nigeria’s south-east
region between August 2021 and November 2024.

The court held that Ekpa was an influential member of a
militant separatist movement whose goal was to actualise the carving out of a
Biafra state from Nigeria.

The district court also ruled that Ekpa had supplied certain
groups with weapons, explosives, and ammunition “through his network of
contacts in the region, and he was also found to have encouraged his followers
on social media platform X to commit crimes in Nigeria”.

Ekpa was also convicted of aggravated tax fraud and
violating the provisions of the Attorneys Act.

The convicted separatist leader is a self-acclaimed disciple
of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

In March 2025, the federal government designated Ekpa a
“terrorism financier”.

Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday

Advertise on NOP NIGERIA to reach thousands of our daily users