In the Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court in the United Kingdom yesterday, allegations of child trafficking, potential modern slavery, and organ harvesting were levelled against Senator Ike Ekweremadu, a former vice president of the senate. Ekweremadu is married to Beatrice Nwanneka, and the couple denies all of the charges.
The United Kingdom’s Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court denied them both bail.
The lawmaker and his wife were charged with conspiring to arrange for a child to travel, with trafficking in children, with possible modern slavery, and with organ harvesting. Due to the denial of their request for bail, the case was postponed until July 7.
According to a Sky News report, they were in court for less than an hour before it was adjourned because the Attorney General needed to make a decision regarding the case’s jurisdiction because two countries—Nigeria and England—are involved.
But the senator for Enugu West Senatorial District made it clear why he needed the travel document in a letter he personally signed and dated December 28, 2021, addressed to the British High Commission in Abuja in support of the organ donor Mr. Ukpo Nwamini David’s visa application.
The letter stated that David was to travel to the Royal Free Hospital in London to participate in kidney donor screenings, an arrangement to which he had agreed.
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As stated in the letter, “I am writing in support of the visa application made by Mr. Ukpo Nwamini David, who is presently undergoing medical evaluations in preparation for a kidney donation to Ms. Sonia Ekweremadu.
David and Sonia will be at the Royal Free Hospital in London, and I will make the necessary financial arrangements. I’ve included a copy of my bank account statement.
“Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me if you need more details.
Please accept my sincere thanks and best wishes.
The Nigerian High Commission sent representatives to the court in London, but they arrived late, according to a broadcast news channel called ARISE News Channel, which covered the Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court proceedings.
Ekweremadu refuted the accusations of human trafficking in court yesterday.
In a statement, he claimed that at no point did he arrange transportation for anyone with the intent to take advantage of him or her. The court was told that his wife also refuted the accusations in a prepared statement.
“There is no doubt that this is a serious allegation,” Gavin Irwin, who is defending Ekweremadu, said. In Nigeria, Mr. Ekweremadu serves in the senate.
His previous position was Deputy President of the Senate, which was even more senior. He is an attorney who practises in Nigeria. In the law firm that bears his name, he serves as the principal.
When all of these problems are considered, they go far beyond the fact that he is a good person; rather, they show that he has served the public with no faults.
Irwin continued, calling the accusations “absolutely absurd.”
On Mrs. Ekweremadu’s behalf, Antonia Gray stated, “She has never been complicit or involved in any alleged illegal trafficking of any young person. She has an impeccable reputation as a financial accountant.
According to Arise News Channel, the Ekweremadus were charged with bringing a 15-year-old Nigerian boy to the UK under the pretence that he would be given a better life there, but the real goal was allegedly to harvest his organs.
The prosecution testified before the court that the former senate president obtained a passport for the boy under the pretence that he was 21 years old, but it was later discovered that he was actually 15 years old.
In addition, the prosecutors informed the court that the Ekweremadus family had a daughter who had kidney-related disease and had been receiving dialysis for a considerable amount of time. They testified before the court that they thought the intention was to transplant their daughter’s kidney with an organ from the boy.
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Both Ekweremadu and his wife requested a bail release from the court through separate legal counsel. However, the magistrate disregarded their request. To the UK government, the couple has turned over their passports.
Due to legal restrictions, the boy’s name was not made public in court. Arise News reported that he was now receiving care and support.
The accused are connected to London through family, despite living in Nigeria.
The prosecutors’ stance was criticised yesterday by a source with knowledge of the case who begged to remain anonymous and insisted that David, who claimed to be underage, was actually an adult.
“The guy told the UK police that he is underage, probably because he didn’t want to go back to Nigeria,” the source claimed. He might have lied about being underage to get the police’s attention.
Science can determine the boy’s age, just as football clubs do when they sign players, whether he is 15, as the police claim, or 21, according to sources familiar with the case.
The family source, who was reportedly miffed by the turn of events, reportedly asked, “Who is now caring for their sick daughter? The daughter, who had been receiving dialysis for some time, was wasting away. If she didn’t receive a transplant right away, they told them she wouldn’t have much time left. They claimed Ekweremadu made the boy a promise to give his daughter a second chance at life in exchange for his agreement. Now observe the damage the boy has caused to them. With no one to care for her, the poor girl’s life is ebbing away, and her parents are in jail for trying to save her precious life.
Ekweremadu attended plenary on the red chamber’s floor in Abuja yesterday before travelling to the UK, where he and his wife were both arrested and are currently being held.
According to the UK Metropolitan Police, the two were charged after a specialised crime team investigation. The investigation was started last month, according to the police, after detectives received a tip about possible violations of the modern slavery legislation in May 2022.
A police statement read, “Beatrice Nwanneka Ekweremadu, 55 (10.9.66) of Nigeria is charged with conspiracy to arrange/facilitate travel of another person with a view to exploitation, specifically organ harvesting.
Ike Ekweremadu, 60 (12.05.62) of Nigeria is accused of conspiring to arrange or facilitate the travel of another person with the intention of exploitation, specifically organ harvesting, according to a statement from the police.
Ekweremadu, who was recently appointed a visiting professor at the University of Lincoln, held the position of deputy president of the senate of Nigeria for three terms from 2007 to 2019.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senator is a lawyer and politician who has served in the Senate since 2003.
Detectives were informed, and the Metropolitan Police’s Specialist Crime Team launched an investigation.
According to family sources, Ekweremadu’s identical twin brother is rushing to London this morning to be with his brother during this difficult time. This information was provided last night.
