Organ harvesting - UK court grants Ekweremadu's wife bail, retains Senator

A criminal court in London, on Monday, granted bail to Beatrice Ekweremadu, who is enmeshed in an alleged organ harvesting trial along with her husband, Ike Ekweremadu, a former Nigerian Deputy Senate President.

According to UK Daily Mail, the court, popularly known as Old Bailey, granted bail to Mrs Ekweremadu on stringent conditions but denied bail to her husband, Mr Ekweremadu, who continues to be held in custody.

"The position is that I have granted bail to Beatrice subject to some fairly stringent conditions but I have refused bail to Ike," U.K. Daily Mail quoted Judge Richard Marks as saying.

Foundry Chambers representing the Ekweremadus in a statement confirmed the bail granted to Mrs Ekweremadu saying "an application for bail on Friday was refused for Ike Ekweremadu but granted for Beatrice on strict conditions to ensure her attendance and obviate any concerns of her being a flight risk ahead of a plea and trial preparation hearing scheduled to take place on 4th August 2022 and a subsequent trial next year."

Additionally, a Nigerian doctor, Obinna Obeta, practising in the U.K has been charged with plotting with the Ekweremadus to traffic a man into the UK to harvest a kidney for their daughter.

According to Daily Mail, Mr Obeta appeared before Bexley Magistrates' court on July 13 and is charged under the Modern Slavery Act with arranging the travel of a 21-year-old man between August 2021 and May 2022 to exploit him.

PREMIUM TIMES had earlier reported how the police arrested and charged the couple with conspiracy to harvest the organs of a child brought to London by them.

According to the prosecutors, the couple has a daughter who has a kidney-related disease and has been on dialysis for quite some time. They added that they believe the plan was to use an organ from the boy on their daughter who appears to need a kidney transplant.

A U.K. court later ruled that the boy in question, David Nwamni, is not a minor.