Ekweremadu, wife, doctor bag jail term under Modern Slavery Act

The case of organ trafficking against former Nigerian Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, and his wife Beatrice, was brought to court on Friday, May 5th for the final hearing and they were sentenced to prison in the United Kingdom. 

Ekweremadu, 60, his wife Beatrice, 56, and their doctor, Obinna Obeta, were found culpable of violating the Modern Slavery Act.

The court found the trio guilty of facilitating the travel of a young man to Britain with a view to his exploitation after a six-week trial at the Old Bailey.

The jury determined that the trio  criminally conspired to bring the 21-year-old Lagos street trader to London to exploit him for his kidney.

The organ donor had been offered an illegal reward to become a donor for the senator’s daughter after kidney disease forced her to drop out of a master’s degree in film at Newcastle University, the court heard.

Ekweremadu was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison; his wife, Beatrice, was sentenced to four years and six months of imprisonment; and Obeta received a ten-year prison term.

Justice Johnson who presided over the case told the defendants: “In each of your cases, the offence you committed is so serious that neither a fine nor a community sentence can be justified.”

The case marked the first time defendants have been convicted under the Modern Slavery Act of an organ harvesting conspiracy.