The Päijät-Häme district court in Finland has commenced the trial of the Biafra agitator, Simon Ekpa, over terrorism related offences.
Ekpa, who was brought before the court on Friday, was charged with “public incitement to commit a crime with terrorist intent” and “participation in a terrorist group,” a Finnish news platform, Yle, reported.
He had denied all the charges during a police investigation, but the prosecution presented his X post during the main hearing as an evidence.
Ekpa was in court alongside his lawyer, Kaarle Gummerus, and could face a minimum of six years in prison if the court grants the request of the state prosecutor, Sampsa Hakala.
Hakala was quoted by Yle as saying during the preparatory session that Ekpa was suspected of inciting crimes in Nigeria from Finland through his participation in the activities of a terrorist group.
“We have a lot of evidence of this person’s activities on the internet and his communications. So far, it’s a pretty good picture of what we think happened in this matter,” Hakala said.
He, however, said it was difficult to get accurate information about the suspected terrorist acts as the incidents occurred in Africa.
But Ekpa’s lawyer said the information obtained from Nigeria as regards the matter could not be verified.
The Finnish authorities have also filed charges bordering on “suspicion of aggravated tax fraud and violation of the provisions of the Attorneys Act” against Ekpa.
On Monday, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) condemned the decision by Finnish authorities to schedule the trial of Ekpa on May 30, 2025, earmarked IPOB to commemorate the memory of martyrs from the Biafra war.
The group said Ekpa is not a member of IPOB and has been publicly disowned by its leader, Nnamdi Kanu.
