Ike Ekweremadu, arrested In UK for organ harvesting

Nigeria's former deputy senate president, Ike Ekweremadu and his wife, Beatrice, have allegedly been arrested and charged for bringing a child to the UK for organ harvesting.

The Metropolitan Police while confirming their arrest said the pair were charged to court on Thursday following an investigation by the force’s specialist crime team, The Cable reports.

The police added that the investigation was launched after detectives were alerted to potential offences under modern slavery legislation in May 2022.

“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, namely organ harvesting,” the statement reads.

“Ike Ekweremadu, 60 (12.05.62) of Nigeria is charged with conspiracy to arrange/facilitate travel of another person with a view to exploitation, namely organ harvesting.

“They have both been remanded in custody and will appear at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court later today.”

Reacting to Ekweremadu's arrest is a social media activist Aondosoo Labe , who writes from Vandeikya Local Government Area, Benue State.

He explained the punishment the former Senate President could face alongside his wife for organ harvesting and wrote;

"Ike Ekweremadu & Wife: What is the maximum penalty for illegal organ harvesting in the UK?

In layman terms, Nigerian politician and lawyer, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, who has served in the Senate of Nigeria since May 2003 representing Enugu-West Senatorial District – and was the Deputy President of the Nigerian Senate for three consecutive (6th, 7th and 8th) senate terms; could alongside his wife, Nwanneka Ekweremadu, face up to 9 years in prison in the UK if found guilty for a conspiracy to transport a child into the United Kingdom in order to harvest organs. 

In the UK, the Organ Tourism and Cadavers on Display Bill 2021 sponsored by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour), protects UK citizens and residents from complicity in forced organ harvesting and specifies penalties for UK citizens and residents travelling abroad for organ transplants when it is not clear that donors have given appropriate consent – as alleged in the Ekweremadus’ case.

According to the OTCD Bill, the penalty for such an offence would be a term of imprisonment and/or a fine. The term of imprisonment would not exceed 12 months, in the case of summary conviction, or nine (9) years, in the case of conviction on indictment. 

What is the scale of the global organ trade?

According to the Global Financial Integrity, a US-based think tank, has conservatively estimated that organ trafficking generates approximately $840 million to $1.7 billion annually – with up to 10% of all transplants are thought to rely on organs that have been illicitly acquired – which comprises of an average 7,995 illegal kidney transplants, 2,615 illegal liver transplants and 654 illegal heart transplants.

International standards governing donation and transplantation.

If found guilty, the Ekweremadus have also violated among others, the following international standards governing donation and transplantation: the World Health Organization (WHO) Guiding Principles on Human Cell, Tissue and Organ Transplantation”; Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography; Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children; and the Council of Europe Convention against Trafficking in Human Organs.

Considering all of these, Senator Ike Ekweremadu and his wife, Nwanneka Ekweremadu, having enjoyed impunity in Nigeria, have come face to face with justice, to serve as a lesson for many Nigerian politicians. 

Sadly, some of us would not be surprised if the Ekweremadus return to Nigeria as "celebrities" – as in the infamous case of Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha of Bayelsa State who jumped bail in December 2005 from the United Kingdom by allegedly disguising himself as a woman and was welcomed back by crowds of joyful supporters in Nigeria, where he enjoyed immunity until death in October 2015".

More details coming..