The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, to life imprisonment.
This is according to a judgement delivered by Justice James Omotosho on Thursday, November 20, 2025.
Earlier, the court convicted the separatist leader on charges related to “terrorism” after a years-long trial.
In his ruling, Justice Omotosho said prosecutors proved that Kanu’s broadcasts and orders to his now-banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) group incited deadly attacks on security forces and citizens in the southeast.
“His intention was quite clear, as he believed in violence. These threats of violence were nothing but terrorist acts,” Omotosho said.
Kanu was first arrested in 2015 but left the country in 2017 while on bail after a military raid on his home. His bail was later revoked in 2019.
In 2021, he was rearrested in Kenya and brought back to Nigeria, though his lawyers claimed he was mistreated before his transfer — an allegation Kenya denied.
During his time abroad, Kanu regularly used social media and Radio Biafra broadcasts to criticise the Nigerian government. Officials said his messages encouraged attacks on security agencies.
He pleaded not guilty in 2021 to seven charges, including terrorism, treason, and spreading false information about former President Muhammadu Buhari.
