The Päijät-Häme District Court in Finland on Monday, September 1, sentenced Simon Ekpa to six years in prison for terrorism-related offences and other crimes, according to court documents.

The court said the 40-year-old former Lahti municipal politician took part in the activities of a terrorist group, encouraged the public to commit crimes for terrorist purposes, engaged in serious tax fraud, and broke the Lawyers Act. He was ordered to remain in custody.

According to the judgment, between August 2021 and November 2024, Ekpa tried to promote the independence of the Biafra region in southeastern Nigeria through illegal means. The court said he used social media to gain political influence and took advantage of the confusion within the separatist movement to play a key role in it.

The court also found that Ekpa organized the movement into a more structured form and helped create armed groups, which were considered terrorist organizations. He allegedly supplied them with weapons, explosives, and ammunition through his contacts and also urged his followers on X (formerly Twitter) to commit crimes in Nigeria.

The main hearing took place between May 30 and June 25, 2025, over 12 sessions, with a panel of three judges who all agreed on the decision.

Background

Finnish authorities arrested Simon Ekpa in December 2024 on suspicion of terrorist activities. The Päijät-Häme District Court ordered him to be detained on probable cause, accusing him of spreading separatist propaganda on social media and inciting people to commit crimes with terrorist intent.

The alleged offences were said to have occurred between August 23, 2021, in Lahti, Finland. Investigators also sought the arrest of four other men on similar suspicions, but those charges were later dropped due to lack of evidence.