A former Nigerian senator, Ike Ekweremadu, is currently on trial in London’s Central Criminal Court over allegations of exploiting a street trader by transporting him to the UK to donate a kidney. Along with his wife, Beatrice Ekweremadu, and their 25-year-old daughter, Sonia, they deny the charges of conspiring to arrange or facilitate the travel of the young man with the intention of exploitation between August 2021 and May 2022.
According to the prosecution, the Ekweremadus recruited a 21-year-old man from a Lagos street market to be a kidney donor for Sonia. The man was led to believe he was traveling to London for work and would be paid thousands of pounds for his kidney donation. However, it is illegal in the UK to offer a reward for kidney donations, which are otherwise lawful.
The man was transported to London in February 2022 and was made to pretend to be Sonia’s cousin. The prosecution argues that the man was under a high degree of control and was dependent on the information given to him. The organ transplant never took place and Sonia remains on dialysis treatment.
Ike Ekweremadu was a former deputy president of the Nigerian Senate and a practicing lawyer, while his wife and daughter are also influential figures in Nigerian society. The trial is ongoing and will determine the fate of the Ekweremadu family in the UK.
This case sheds light on the growing problem of illegal organ trafficking and exploitation around the world. It is a reminder of the importance of ethical practices in the medical field and the need for stricter laws and enforcement to prevent such incidents from occurring. The outcome of the trial will also have wider implications for the medical industry and the fight against illegal organ trafficking.