Saturday, May 3, 2025 - A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja was told on Friday, May 2, that Simon Ekpa, an associate of the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, will soon be extradited to Nigeria for prosecution.
The revelation came from a Department of State Services
(DSS) official identified as PWAAA, who testified during the continuation of
Kanu’s trial. The witness said Ekpa would be brought back to face trial for
allegedly supporting Kanu in his pro-Biafra agitation.
Under cross-examination by Kanu’s lawyer, Kanu Agabi (SAN),
the DSS operative admitted that he only became aware of other individuals
backing Kanu through media reports and social media. He stated that he was
unaware of any other person besides Kanu currently being prosecuted in
connection with the agitation.
The witness said he could not recall Kanu ever making
statements against corruption, youth unemployment, or offering apologies to the
President and Igbo leaders. He also claimed not to remember Kanu describing
IPOB as a voluntary and non-violent organisation. While acknowledging the
presence of killings in the North and other parts of the country, he said he
could not link such violence to self-determination struggles and affirmed the
government's efforts to curb the violence.
Providing a background on Kanu's 2015 arrest in Lagos, the
DSS witness noted that the defendant was apprehended in a hotel and that all
recovered items belonged to Kanu. No weapons or signs of public disturbance
were reportedly found on the woman arrested with him. Although the items may
not have been offensive on their own, the witness argued that their intended
use could suggest otherwise. He said his role did not include analysing the
items or bringing others to confront Kanu, and confirmed that Kanu’s statement
was taken without the presence of his lawyer.
The court admitted a long list of items recovered from
Kanu’s hotel room as evidence. These included electronic devices such as
laptops, modems, mobile phones, microphones, and audio recorders, as well as
personal effects like shoes, perfumes, wristwatches, and bank cards. Also among
the exhibits were documents tagged IPOB, passports, one Nigerian and one
British, bearing Kanu’s full name, and various accessories
Justice James Omotosho adjourned the case to May 6, 7, and 8
for continuation of the hearing.
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