A federal high court in Abuja on Thursday convicted Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), on multiple terrorism-related charges filed by the federal government.
Delivering judgement, James Omotosho, the presiding judge, held that the prosecution had proved its case, relying mainly on video recordings in which Kanu was seen issuing threats of violence against Nigeria and its citizens.
The judge said the evidence showed that Kanu’s actions extended beyond Nigeria, noting that in one broadcast the IPOB leader ordered that the American embassy be “brought down.”
Omotosho also described Kanu as an “international terrorist,” citing his alleged plans to bomb the British high commission and kill Catriona Laing, the then British high commissioner.
The ruling marks a major milestone in the protracted legal confrontation between the separatist agitator and the Federal Government.
