The United Kingdom has rejected a request by the Nigerian government to allow former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, to complete his prison sentence in Nigeria. Ekweremadu is serving a nine-year, eight-month sentence handed down in 2023 after a UK court found him guilty of conspiring to harvest the kidney of a young man in what became one of the most prominent organ-trafficking cases in recent years.
A delegation led by Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, recently met officials of the UK Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to discuss the possibility of repatriating Ekweremadu so he could serve the remainder of his term in a Nigerian correctional facility. However, according to The Guardian UK, the MoJ declined the request, raising concerns that Nigeria could not provide sufficient guarantees that the former lawmaker would continue his sentence once returned.
A source quoted in the report said: “The UK will not tolerate modern slavery and any offender will face the full force of UK law.” With the rejection, Ekweremadu will remain in a UK prison until the completion of his term.
Meanwhile, his wife, Beatrice Ekweremadu, who received a four-year, six-month sentence in the same case—half of which was served in custody, was released earlier this year and has since returned to Nigeria.
Ekweremadu’s legal troubles began in June 2022 when he and his wife, Beatrice, were arrested at Heathrow Airport and later convicted at the Old Bailey for conspiring to bring a young Nigerian to the UK for the purpose of harvesting his kidney for their ailing daughter.
The case, prosecuted under the UK’s Modern Slavery Act 2015, was the first organ-harvesting conviction secured under the law. In May 2023, Ekweremadu was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison, while his wife received four years and six months. Their daughter, Sonia, who required the transplant, was not charged.
The conviction drew widespread attention across Nigeria and the international community, prompting appeals for clemency from the National Assembly, ECOWAS Parliament, and several political leaders. Diplomatic engagements intensified in 2024 and 2025, culminating in Nigeria’s formal request that Ekweremadu be allowed to complete his sentence at home.
However, the UK rejected the request, insisting it could not guarantee he would serve the full term after transfer and reaffirming its zero-tolerance stance against human trafficking and modern slavery.
