The British Government has denied Nigeria’s request to transfer former Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu to serve the remainder of his prison sentence in the country, The Guardian UK reports.
Ekweremadu, 63, was sentenced to nine years and eight months in 2023 after a UK court found him, his wife Beatrice, and medical doctor Obinna Obeta guilty of conspiring to exploit a young Nigerian man for his kidney. The organ was intended for their daughter, Sonia, at a private London hospital. The case marked the first conviction under the UK’s Modern Slavery Act for organ trafficking.
A Nigerian delegation, led by Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Tuggar, met with officials at the UK Ministry of Justice last week to request Ekweremadu’s transfer. However, a Ministry of Justice source told The Guardian the request was refused due to concerns that Nigeria could not guarantee the continuation of his sentence.
The UK government emphasized that prisoner transfers are at its discretion, following careful assessment of whether such moves serve the interests of justice. Another official added, “The UK will not tolerate modern slavery and any offender will face the full force of UK law.”
Beatrice Ekweremadu, who received a four-year, six-month sentence, has been released after serving half her term and is now back in Nigeria. Justice Jeremy Johnson, who sentenced the trio, described their actions as a “despicable trade” and called Ekweremadu the “driving force” behind the plot, noting the case represented a “substantial fall from grace.”
The victim, identified in court as C, was allegedly taken to the Royal Free Hospital in London in February 2022 for a proposed £80,000 transplant under the false pretense that he was Sonia’s cousin volunteering a kidney. The hospital rejected the procedure in March 2022, and the plot was only exposed after the victim fled and sought help.
Obeta, who had previously received a kidney from another allegedly trafficked donor in 2021, is serving a 10-year sentence, with two-thirds of his term to be spent in custody.
Nigeria’s bid to bring Ekweremadu home has drawn public criticism, highlighting ongoing debate over justice and accountability in high-profile criminal cases.