Finnish Police Release Simon Ekpa

By Gideon Njoku

Simon Ekpa, the self-acclaimed disciple of Nnamdi Kanu, Leader of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, has been released from custody by the Finnish Police.

Ekpa was released after being grilled for hours by the Police.

The Finnish Police had arrested Ekpa on Thursday, to the excitement of most Igbo in the South-east of Nigeria. Ekpa had been terrorizing the Zone by inflicting violence, fear, and death on them. No thanks to the usual sit-at-home orders he declares at a drop of the hat, the economy of the Zone has been crippled.

A couple of days ago, he reiterated that there will be no elections in the South-east.

To instill fears in the people and stop them from voting, he declared a shutdown of the Zone. In the past few days, violence has escalated in the South-east with at least 20 people, including law enforcement agents, killed. Kidnapping and destruction and razing of Public and private facilities are also on the increase.

When the news of Ekpa’s arrest broke, accompanied by a picture of him being led out in handcuffs by plain clothes Policemen, many people thought it was in connection with his activities in Nigeria from Finland, especially as the Nigerian Government had invited the Finnish Ambassador to Nigeria and laid a complaint against him.

But the Finnish Police said Ekpa was arrested for a crime committed in Finland.

It is not known if it is connected with his tirade against Nigeria from Finland.

But Tommi Rees of the Central Criminal Police in Lahti said: “The person being questioned today is suspected of a crime. We will return to the title on Friday.”