The Federal High Court in Abuja has found the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, guilty on three out of the seven terrorism-related charges brought against him by the Federal Government.
Delivering the judgment on Thursday, Justice James Omotosho ruled that the prosecution successfully proved its case, relying heavily on video recordings and interviews in which Kanu issued violent threats against Nigeria and its citizens.
The court upheld counts one and two, which accused Kanu of using a series of broadcasts to incite violence and killings in pursuit of his agitation for an independent Biafra state. According to the judgment, his widely circulated directives—including the controversial sit-at-home orders across the South-East—were deemed acts of terrorism.
Justice Omotosho also found him guilty on counts four and five, which linked his broadcasts to violent incidents during the #EndSARS protests, resulting in the deaths of security personnel and destruction of public assets in Lagos.
The judge dismissed Kanu’s claims that he was denied a fair trial.
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Justice Omotosho emphasized the gravity of the offences, stating:
“A person who is found guilty of the offence will get a maximum of a death sentence.”
He further highlighted that Kanu’s repeated threats of violence, including his enforcement of sit-at-home orders, fell squarely under terrorism provisions. The court referenced one of Kanu’s broadcasts, quoting him as saying:
“The defendant enforced the order of Sit-at-Home in the South East. Saying there will be a complete shutdown of Biafraland. Saying I know some of you are foolish, trying to open your shop around 12 noon. If you do that, we will burn you in that shop.”
Describing the conduct as unlawful, the judge added:
“This is an unconstitutional act that is subversive, a notorious act where people in the South East are made to sit at home, everywhere is deserted, even the farmlands.”
The court also noted that Kanu, who identifies as the founder and Director of Radio and Television Biafra, made broadcasts declaring that “the Army of Nigeria will die and that everything called Nigeria will perish in Biafra.”