The British Government has rejected Nigeria’s request to transfer former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, to serve the remainder of his prison sentence in Nigeria. Ekweremadu, 63, is currently serving a nine-year, eight-month sentence in the United Kingdom after being convicted in 2023 for organ trafficking under the UK’s Modern Slavery Act—the first conviction of its kind.
PUNCH Online reports that a Nigerian delegation led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, visited the UK Ministry of Justice last week seeking Ekweremadu’s transfer. However, according to a report by The Guardian UK, British officials turned down the request, expressing concerns that Nigeria could not provide assurances that the former lawmaker would continue his sentence upon return.
A UK Ministry of Justice source was quoted as saying that prisoner transfers remain discretionary and must align with the “interests of justice.” Another government source reiterated the UK’s firm stance on modern slavery, stating that offenders will face the full consequences of British law.
Ekweremadu, his wife Beatrice, and medical doctor Obinna Obeta were convicted for conspiring to exploit a young Nigerian man by procuring his kidney for their daughter, Sonia, at a private London hospital. During sentencing, Justice Jeremy Johnson condemned the act as a “despicable trade,” describing human organ harvesting as a form of slavery. Ekweremadu was labelled the “driving force” behind the plot.
Beatrice Ekweremadu has since completed half of her four-year, six-month sentence and returned to Nigeria. Obeta remains in custody, serving a 10-year term. Nigeria’s request for repatriation has sparked mixed reactions, with the country’s High Commission in London yet to comment.
