The UK government has turned down a request from Nigeria to deport former senior politician Ike Ekweremadu, who is currently serving a prison sentence for organ trafficking.
Ekweremadu, 63, a former deputy president of the Nigerian senate and ally of former president Goodluck Jonathan, was sentenced in 2023 to nine years and eight months for conspiring to exploit a young man’s kidney for transplantation into his daughter, Sonia. His wife Beatrice and associate Dr Obinna Obeta were also convicted in the plot, marking the UK’s first ever conviction for organ trafficking under the Modern Slavery Act.
Last week, a Nigerian delegation led by Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar met with the UK Ministry of Justice, requesting that Ekweremadu be deported to serve the rest of his sentence in Nigeria. However, UK officials rejected the proposal, reportedly due to concerns that Nigeria could not guarantee he would continue serving his sentence once returned.
A government spokesperson declined to comment on individual cases but stressed that prisoner transfers are granted only when they serve the interests of justice. Another source was clear: “The UK will not tolerate modern slavery and any offender will face the full force of UK law.”
Beatrice Ekweremadu, who received a four and a half year sentence, has already been released and returned to Nigeria.
During sentencing, Mr Justice Jeremy Johnson condemned the trio’s involvement in what he called a “despicable trade,” emphasizing that organ harvesting is a form of slavery that treats human beings as commodities. He described Ekweremadu as the “driving force” behind the plot, an enormous fall from grace for a once powerful political figure.
