Simon Ekpa appeals six-year terrorism sentence in Finland

Pro-Biafra separatist campaigner, Simon Ekpa has appealed his six-year prison sentence for terrorism-related offences in Finland.

The Finnish prosecutor handling the case has also filed an appeal, seeking a harsher sentence on the grounds that six years is insufficient given the severity of the offences. The Finnish Court of Appeal is expected to hear the matter within three weeks.  

Ekpa was arrested by Finnish authorities in November 2024 and charged with inciting terrorism and participating in the activities of a terrorist group. In September 2025, the Päijät-Häme District Court found him guilty and sentenced him to six years in prison.

The district court established that Ekpa leveraged his significant social media following between August 2021 and November 2024 to inflame tensions in Nigeria’s South-East. It identified him as a prominent figure in a militant separatist movement aiming to carve out an independent Biafran state.  

In its ruling, the court found that Ekpa facilitated the supply of weapons, explosives, and ammunition to armed groups in the region through his contacts and repeatedly encouraged followers on X to execute crimes in Nigeria. He was also convicted of aggravated tax fraud and violations under Finland’s Attorneys Act.  

Ekpa, who has maintained that he is a disciple of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, was officially designated a terrorism financier by the Nigerian Federal Government in March 2025.