Three Nigerian nationals were found guilty of attempting to exploit a Nigerian migrant by a UK judge. According to the judge, the victim was brought to the UK with the intention of harvesting one of his kidneys.
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“A senior Nigerian senator, his wife, and a doctor have been found guilty… of exploiting a vulnerable victim for illegal organ harvesting,” a judge found on Thursday at Britain’s Central Criminal Court, the Old Bailey (March 23).
It is the first verdict of its kind in the UK under the Modern Slavery Act. According to the British press, the accused “owns several properties,” “has an 80-person staff,” and wields considerable power.
The victim in question is a Nigerian migrant, according to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). He cannot be identified for legal reasons, but according to the British newspaper The Guardian, he was a 21-year-old Lagos street trader when he was brought to the UK.
The Metropolitan Police and the Crown Prosecution Service presented evidence during the six-week trial that showed 60-year-old Ike and 56-year-old Beatrice Ekweremadu conspired with 51-year-old doctor Obinna Obeta to “identify individuals in Nigeria whose kidneys might be harvested” for their daughter Sonia Ekweremadu’s benefit.
According to the BBC, the transplant was a private procedure that would have cost around €90,000 if performed.
Nigerian trafficking
Sonia Ekweremadu (25) has a kidney disease and requires dialysis on a regular basis. According to the Guardian, her illness forced her to withdraw from a master’s degree in film she was pursuing in the UK.
According to the CPS, the victim was brought to London in February 2022 and “kept under the defendants’ direction and financial control.” According to the CPS, their plan was for “the victim to provide a kidney to Sonia Ekweremadu in exchange for the suggested amount of €2,700 or €7,900.” According to the CPS, the two figures were discovered during the investigation, as was the promise of work in the UK.
On May 5, 2022, the victim of the plot entered a police station in Staines (near London), and police discovered the case. He told the police that he had been trafficked from Nigeria into the UK and that someone was attempting to transplant his kidney.
Despite being promised opportunities in the UK, he says he only realised what was going on when he went to a hospital appointment.
Prior to going to the police, the victim had a kidney screening exam with a consultant doctor at the Royal Free Hospital in London. During the course of the case, it was discovered that the consultant had become suspicious of the circumstances surrounding the proposed transplant and decided that the transplant could not take place.
The victim said he only realised what was going on when he was taken to a hospital in London for a pre-op exam | Photo: Daniel Kalker/picture-alliance
The victim said he only realised what was going on when he was taken to a hospital in London for a pre-op exam | Photo: Daniel Kalker/picture-alliance
Assembled as cousins
During the trial, the prosecution demonstrated their belief that the accused “took steps to create the false impression that the victim and Sonia Ekweremadu were cousins.” They claimed that this was required to justify the victim’s temporary visa to travel to the UK. According to the prosecution, the victim was also coached to give “false answers to the Royal Free medical team.”
The Guardian and the BBC reported earlier in the trial that the victim was even asked to dress up and eat at a posh restaurant with Sonia and her family to give the impression that he was there to willingly donate a kidney to a family member.
According to the Guardian, a medical secretary at the Royal Free Hospital posed as an Igbo translator “for a fee” in order to persuade doctors that the victim was a selfless donor.
According to the Guardian, the prosecutor Hugh Davies KC told the court that the man and other potential donors were treated as “disposable assets – spare parts for reward.” He described their interaction with the man as a “emotionally cold commercial transaction.”
When it became clear that the first man would not work out, the Ekweremadus began looking for another suitable donor in Turkey, according to the BBC.
Act to Abolish Modern Slavery
The Chief Crown Prosecutor, Joanne Jakymec, stated that “the convicted defendants demonstrated utter disregard for the victim’s welfare, health, and well-being and used their considerable influence to maintain a high degree of control throughout, with the victim having a limited understanding of what was really going on here.”
The case was filed under the UK’s Modern Slavery Act. Detective Inspector Esther Richardson of the Metropolitan Police’s Modern Slavery and Exploitation Command called the conviction “historic” and praised “the victim’s bravery in speaking out against these offenders.”
The Metropolitan Police Modern Slavery and Exploitation Command team has promised to assist any victims of modern slavery and ensure that they are “supported, signposted, and safeguarded” as they proceed to trial.
The defendants were found guilty of “conspiracy to arrange another person’s travel with the intent to exploit.” In the case, Sonia Ekweremadu was found not guilty. She also did not testify at the trial.
On May 5, the judge is expected to hand down a sentence. All of the defendants deny the charges levelled against them.
