Nigerian separatist leader Simon Ekpa sentenced in Finland to 6 years in prison

LAGOS Nigeria AP Simon Ekpa a Nigerian separatist leader has been sentenced to six years in prison by a Finnish court for terrorism tax fraud and an ethical violation Ekpa who lives in Finland heads the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra IPOB in Nigeria which has been allegedly responsible for killings and abductions of hundreds of people in Nigeria s southeastern region The Finnish court mentioned Simon Ekpa was sentenced to six years in prison for participating in the programs of a terrorist group constituents incitement to commit a crime for terrorist purposes aggravated tax fraud and violating the provisions of the Lawyers Act The court revealed he pushed for the independence of a separatist region in Nigeria through illegal means and equipped the groups with weapons explosives and ammunition through his contact framework In the Nigerian military declared Ekpa wished as part of nearly people sought on charges of terrorism After his arrest in Finland the Nigerian ruling body sought his extradition For years IPOB has sought to reignite a failed secession push by former Biafra Biafra was a short-lived country that comprised Nigeria s southeastern states including future oil-producing areas The Nigerian military executive rejected the secession which led to a civil war between and in which at least million people died The group was banned in Nigeria in Ekpa took over from Nnamdi Kanu the group s founder who was arrested by Interpol in a sting operation in in Kenya and extradited to Nigeria Kanu has since been in prison with his trial still ongoing In response to Kanu s arrest the group forbade any commercial activity every Monday in the region a disruption that has been ongoing since The sit-at-home protests have led to deaths according to a count by SBM Intelligence a Lagos-based geopolitical vulnerability advisory and cost the Nigerian financial sector trillion naira billion Source