Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi has said the federal government is yet to commence the extradition process of Simon Ekpa, the controversial Biafra agitator.
Fagbemi denied reports that he recently announced that the Nigerian Government had commenced the extradition process of Ekpa.
A statement by Kamarudeen Ogundele, media aide to Fagbemi, clarified that the AGF’s recent comment on the case is that the Nigerian government will wait for the outcome of Ekpa’s trial in Finland.
The AGF said the government is engaging with Finnish authorities to ensure that Ekpa is held accountable.
“The attention of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), has been drawn to media reports where he was erroneously reported to have said that the federal government had commenced an extradition process against Simon Ekpa,” the statement reads.
“The report is untrue and a complete departure from what the AGF said at the Stakeholders/Citizen Engagement Forum held on Thursday in Abuja.
“Ekpa, a leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), is currently standing trial in Finland for charges filed against him by the Finnish government.
“To set the record straight, what the AGF said during the question and answer session was that the Nigerian government had been engaging with Finnish authorities to ensure that Simon Ekpa is held accountable for his actions.”
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.
Recently, Kaarle Gummerus, Ekpa’s new lawyer, said the trial of the agitator is expected to start in June 2025.
