Simon Ekpa, the controversial Biafra separatist, has appointed a new legal representative ahead of his upcoming trial in Finland scheduled for June 2025.

In November 2024, Ekpa, a self-proclaimed leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, was arrested by law enforcement in Finland.

He was subsequently sent to prison by the district court of Päijät-Häme for “spreading terrorist propaganda on social media.”

Ekpa was said to have committed the crime in 2021 in Lahti municipality.

He is accused of instigating violence and inciting terror in the South East of Nigeria through his social media pages.

Nigerian authorities have been demanding the extradition of Ekpa, a dual citizen of Finland and Nigeria, for prosecution.

However, the effort has been yielded the right result.

Last year, Mikko Laaksonen, the senior detective superintendent at the National Bureau of Investigation, NBI, in Finland, disclosed that a Finnish district court fixed May 2025 for the prosecution to file charges against Ekpa.

Subsequently, Laaksonen said Ekpa will remain in custody until his trial since the alleged offence is not bailable.

In March, Nigeria sanctions committee (NSC) designated Ekpa and 16 entities as alleged terrorism financiers in the country.

The committee also ordered the freezing of the bank accounts connected to the alleged terrorism financiers.
According to BBC Pidgin, Ekpa has changed his lawyer because the previous one had “retired from service.”

Kaarle Gummerus, Ekpa’s new lawyer, said he had received the pre-trial file of his client and he is “currently checking through.”

Gummerus added that Ekpa will appear in court in June 2025 to face trial.

Love Ogah, daughter of renowned Nigerian clergyman and founder of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo, has revealed a shocking account of an assassination attempt on her father during her secondary school years.

Speaking during a recent sermon, Ogah recounted how a group of hired assassins stormed their home with the intent to kill Bishop Oyedepo.

According to her, the assailants openly declared their mission upon arrival and conducted an extensive search of the house in pursuit of the popular preacher.

Despite combing the residence for hours, the attackers reportedly failed to locate him. Ogah, recalling the incident, said the family watched in disbelief as the drama unfolded.

“The assassins came and said they came to kill my father. They searched everywhere, room to room, but couldn’t find him,” she narrated. “After they left, my father came out and said he saw them the whole time — they just couldn’t see him. All of us were looking like it was a film trick.”

She added that Bishop Oyedepo maintained he remained physically present and watched the intruders, yet they were supernaturally blinded to his presence.

The Nigeria Customs Service has made a significant seizure of 12,500 litres of petrol worth over ₦25 million which was intercepted from suppliers of bandits within the Babanna Border area of Niger State.

According to the Assistant Comptroller General of Customs in charge of Finance, Administration, and Special Duties, and National Coordinator of Operation Whirlwind, Hussein Ejibunu, the seizure was made possible through the collaboration of locals and sister security agencies.

During a press briefing in Minna, North Central Nigeria, Ejibunu highlighted the security threats posed by the Lakurawa terrorist group along the fringes of Kebbi State.

He revealed that the group has claimed lives, including three officers lost in a recent attack in Bashaga village in Kebbi State.

The Comptroller Niger-Kogi command of the Customs, Pascal Chibuoke, commended the efforts of the locals and sister security agencies in making the seizure possible.

This interception is part of the Nigeria Customs Service’s efforts to disrupt the supply chain of bandits and terrorists in the region.