Simon Ekpa, a Finnish-Nigerian municipal politician, has
been detained by the Päijät-Häme District Court on probable cause for
incitement to commit crimes with terrorist intent. The alleged offense occurred
in Lahti on 23 August, 2021.
The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is
also seeking the detention of four additional men on terrorism-related charges.
Ekpa, who has represented Finland's National Coalition
Party (NCP) in local roles, currently serves on Lahti's public transport
committee. He is also known for leading a separatist group in Nigeria
advocating for the establishment of an independent Biafran state in the
country's southeast.
According to the NBI, Ekpa is suspected of using his
leadership position in a Nigerian separatist group to promote actions that have
led to violence against civilians and authorities in south eastern Nigeria.
These efforts are believed to have been coordinated from Finland, including
through Ekpa's social media channels.
"This
activity has been carried out, among other means, via social media
channels," said Detective Chief Inspector Otto Hiltunen
in a statement.
Among the suspects, Ekpa resides in the Lahti region,
while two others have addresses in Helsinki. One suspect has no registered
address in Finland.
History
of controversy
Ekpa has previously been implicated in criminal
activities. In 2023, Finnish police detained him on suspicion of fundraising
fraud but released him later the same evening.
Ekpa's separatist activism has drawn global attention,
particularly his calls to boycott Nigerian elections.
"No elections will be held! Nigerian elections will not be allowed in Biafran territory in 2023," he declared in a video on social media.
Ekpa has also publicly justified the use of violence.
"I
support violence against Nigerian government forces. This is self-defence. They
constantly attack us and have committed numerous war crimes. We have no choice
but to defend ourselves," he stated.
Party
responds
NCP
Secretary Timo Elo declined to comment on Ekpa's possible membership of the
party.
"We
never say who is and who isn't our member. That is confidential
information," Elo told Yle.
Elo did however say that if a member of the party was suspected
of terrorism offences, that would likely lead to their expulsion.
According to Elo, Ekpa's role on the public transport
commission, for example, should be assessed locally.
No comments:
Post a Comment