Nigeria: Simon Ekpa Appeals Six-Year Terrorism Sentence in Finland

What the report says

Simon Ekpa, a pro-Biafra separatist activist, has appealed the six-year prison sentence he received in Finland for terrorism-related offences, according to Vanguard’s report distributed by AllAfrica. The Finnish prosecutor has also challenged the ruling and is seeking a longer sentence, arguing that the original punishment was too lenient. The Finnish Court of Appeal is expected to hear the case within the next three weeks.

The report says Ekpa was arrested by Finnish authorities in November 2024 and later charged with inciting terrorism and taking part in the activities of a terrorist group. He was convicted in September 2025 by the Päijät-Häme District Court, which found that he had used a large social media following to intensify tensions in Nigeria’s South-East between August 2021 and November 2024.

The court also said Ekpa was linked to a militant separatist network seeking an independent Biafra state and had helped supply some groups with weapons, explosives and ammunition through contacts in the region. It further held that he encouraged followers on X, formerly Twitter, to commit crimes in Nigeria. He was also convicted of aggravated tax fraud and violating Finland’s Attorneys Act. In Nigeria, the federal government designated him a terrorism financier in March 2025. The case matters because it connects a Finland-based prosecution with security concerns and separatist violence in south-eastern Nigeria.