Simon Ekpa, a contentious Biafra advocate and a politician in Lahti, Finland, has been formally accused of terrorism-related offenses in the country.
Ekpa, a 40-year-old Nigerian-born businessman, is currently listed as a member of Lahti’s public transit board, representing the National Coalition Party of Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo.
He has previously served on three other local administrative bodies.
Finland’s Deputy Prosecutor General has decided to charge Ekpa with publicly inciting terrorist acts and involvement in a terrorist organization.
According to the prosecutor, these charges stem from Ekpa’s activities aimed at the re-establishment of an independent Biafran state in southeastern Nigeria, a region that briefly achieved independence in the late 1960s.
These charges are part of a broader investigation that led to the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation detaining five individuals.
Four of them were suspected of financially supporting terrorist activities but were later released during the preliminary investigation.
The charges against Ekpa were filed on Friday morning, and his case will be heard in the Päijät-Häme District Court in Lahti, although a hearing date has not yet been scheduled.
Ekpa is suspected of committing these offenses between August 2021 and November 2024. He is accused of disseminating separatist propaganda from his residence in Lahti.
Finnish police are collaborating with Nigerian authorities in this investigation, as Ekpa’s actions are believed to have contributed to violence and other crimes against civilians and authorities in southeastern Nigeria.
Ekpa has been in custody since last November and has maintained his innocence, denying all allegations against him.
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