A Finnish appeal court has reduced the prison sentence of Biafran separatist leader, Simon Ekpa, from six to four years.
Finnish newspaper Yle disclosed this in a report on Thursday.
However, the Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the Päijät-Häme District Court, which found Ekpa guilty of terrorism-related charges last year.
The charges were related to Ekpa’s alleged activities aimed at re-establishing an independent state of Biafra in southeastern Nigeria.
Recall that in its verdict, the district court said Ekpa had used his significant social media following to stoke tensions in the region between August 2021 and November 2024.
Ekpa subsequently appealed the ruling, seeking to have his conviction and sentence overturned.
In a ruling that offered some relief to Ekpa, the Court of Appeal found him guilty of the same offences but reduced his prison term after considering the circumstances surrounding his actions. The court noted that the situation in the Biafran region closely resembled, but did not meet the definition of, a civil war.
Ekpa had told the court that his involvement was not motivated by terrorist intent, citing the political turmoil in the Biafran region.
The prosecutor in the case had also appealed the district court’s decision, arguing that the prison sentence did not reflect the seriousness of Ekpa’s offences.
Finnish Court of Appeal cuts Simon Ekpa’s jail term from six to four years