Olayiwola Matthew
The Federal Government is seeking the nod of the United Kingdom Government to transfer a former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, to a Nigerian prison to serve his remaining jail term in Nigeria.
According to the news report, President Bola Tinubu had sent a high-level delegation to meet with officials of the UK Ministry of Justice.
Ekweremadu was convicted in the UK for organ trafficking after a plot to bring a 21‑year‑old Lagos street vendor to Britain for a kidney transplant for his daughter, Sonia.
He was sentenced to nine years and eight months under the UK Modern Slavery Act in May 2023 and remains in prison, while his wife, Beatrice, received four years and six months and was released early in 2025.
A medical middleman, Dr. Obinna Obeta, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.
Confirming the move by the Federal Government, Alkasim AbdulKadir, the spokesman of Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, said: “Consultation still ongoing with UK authorities on the matter.
“An appeal for a prisoner exchange for him to serve the remainder of his term in Nigeria was tabled before the United Kingdom authorities.”
It was gathered that the delegation, which included Tuggar and the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Adegbite (SAN), met with officials at the UK Ministry of Justice to discuss the case.
The delegation was later received at the Nigerian High Commission in London by the Acting High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ambassador Mohammed Maidugu.