Ekweremadu is currently serving a nine-year, eight-month term in a UK prison after he was convicted in 2023 for conspiring to harvest the kidney of a young man.
By Ife Osemedua
365Daily – The United Kingdom (UK) has turned down a request by the Federal Government of Nigeria to have former Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu repatriated to serve the remainder of his prison sentence in Nigeria.
Ekweremadu is currently serving a nine-year, eight-month term in a UK prison after he was convicted in 2023 for conspiring to harvest the kidney of a young man. The case, which also involved his wife, Beatrice, and a medical facilitator, attracted global attention and was widely regarded as a landmark human trafficking prosecution.
According to UK authorities, the request did not meet the conditions required under existing prisoner-transfer agreements, effectively ruling out the possibility of his return to Nigeria for now. Officials also noted that such decisions must satisfy strict legal and diplomatic criteria, which were not fulfilled in this instance.
Ekweremadu’s legal team had hoped that a transfer could offer him better access to family support and cultural reintegration, but the rejection has now dashed the chances of a relocation.
Nigerian officials had argued that allowing him to complete his sentence at home would serve humanitarian and administrative considerations.
The development has generated mixed reactions in Nigeria, particularly within political circles where Ekweremadu once held considerable influence. Some of his supporters believe the UK should have granted the request on compassionate grounds, while critics insist that the sentence must run its full course under the jurisdiction where the crime was committed.
With the latest decision, the former lawmaker will remain in the United Kingdom to serve out the remainder of his jail term, barring any future diplomatic review or legal intervention.