The Old Bailey on Friday, May 5th, sentenced former Deputy Senate President of Nigeria Ike Ekweremadu to nine years and eight months in prison over an organ trafficking plot, BBC Pidgin reported.
The United Kingdom court also sentenced Ekweremadu's wife, Beatrice, to four years and six months while the doctor who assisted them, their medical 'middleman' Dr Obinna Obeta, bagged 10 years jail term, and the court also suspended his medical license.
This verdict is coming after the court convicted Ekweremadu, his wife and Obeta in March 2022 over the organ-trafficking plot, noting the couple and the doctor brought one 21-year-old man to the UK from Lagos.
The court convicted Senator Ike Ekweremadu, 60, his wife Beatrice, 56, and Dr Obinna Obeta, 50, saying they conspired to exploit the man for his kidney, in the first of such case under modern slavery laws.
The Old Bailey, a central criminal court in the United Kingdom (UK), was set to deliver a verdict today in the landmark case involving Ekweremadu, his wife, Beatrice and Dr Obeta, who were convicted for organ trafficking in March.
This verdict is the first of its kind in the UK criminal court system.
Earlier, the International Human Rights Commission (IHRC) appealed to the Government of the United Kingdom for leniency in the sentencing of Ekweremadu, alongside his wife Beatrice and Dr Obinna Obeta.
Ambassador at Large and Head of Diplomatic Mission to the Federal Republic of Nigeria, H.E. Ambassador (Dr.) Duru Hezekiah said Ekweremadu is a patriotic Nigerian who has served the Nigerian Senate thrice since 2003.
