Nnamdi Kanu Appeal: IPOB Leader Challenges Life Sentence at Court of Appeal
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The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has formally filed an appeal against his conviction and life sentence.
His lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor, disclosed this in a post on his verified X handle on Wednesday, confirming that the legal process has now moved to the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
Ejimakor said, “The mother of all appeals has been filed, as Nazi Nnamdi Kanu personally appeals against his conviction/sentence today, the 4th of February 2025.”
Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court had earlier sentenced the pro-Biafra leader to life imprisonment.
Part of the appeal reads, “On 4 February 2026, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu filed a Notice of Appeal at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, challenging his terrorism conviction and life sentences imposed by the Federal High Court on 20 November 2025.”
The Nnamdi Kanu appeal follows his conviction on seven terrorism-related counts, including alleged broadcasts, incitement, bomb-making directives, and unlawful importation of a radio transmitter.
Most of the counts attracted life imprisonment, with all sentences ordered to run concurrently. However, his legal team insists that the Nnamdi Kanu appeal is not a routine post-conviction filing.
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Although the Notice of Appeal contains 22 grounds, the defense described it as a highly compressed legal challenge. According to them, these grounds were distilled from over 1,000 identified procedural and legal defects, later refined to 101 core infractions, and finally streamlined to 22 issues in line with appellate rules.
The defense team said the strategy is to present the Court of Appeal with a clear picture of cumulative systemic failure, rather than overwhelm it with volume. They added that the Nnamdi Kanu appeal is designed to highlight fundamental flaws in the entire trial process.
The appeal also challenges the trial court’s failure to address the legal consequences of the 2017 military invasion of Kanu’s home, known as Operation Python Dance II, which reportedly led to deaths and destruction.
The defense argued that Kanu’s absence from Nigeria afterward was due to state violence, yet it was portrayed as voluntary “flight” and used against him during trial.
They further alleged breaches of Section 36 of the Constitution, including failure to hear a pending preliminary objection, leaving a bail application undecided, and delivering judgment without allowing the defense to file a final written address.
As Nigerians follow developments, the Nnamdi Kanu appeal is expected to attract significant legal and public attention in the coming weeks.
See appeal here:
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