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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
The Westminster Magistrates Court in the United Kingdom, on Thursday, accepted that the kidney donor in the case of organ harvesting leveled against former deputy senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, and his wife, Beatrice, is not a minor.
Ekweremadu and his wife were arrested by the London Metropolitan Police on June 21, over allegations of human trafficking and organ harvesting, which violate the country’s Modern Slavery Act.
The police had accused the lawmaker of conspiring to bring a child to the United Kingdom for organ harvesting, saying the victim was a 15-year-old boy.
At the resumption of the case on Thursday, the prosecution accepted that the victim, David Ukpo Nwamini, is 21 years old, contrary to earlier claims that he is 15 years old.
Prosecutors allege the couple planned to have his kidney removed so it could be given to their daughter, Sonia Ekweremadu.
Nwamini was said to have refused to consent to the procedure after undergoing tests at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead.
It was alleged the Ekweremadus treated him as a slave before he escaped and went to Staines Police Station, Surrey.
Ekweremadu and his wife both appeared in the dock at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, following previous hearings at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court in June.
The former deputy senate president was charged with conspiracy to arrange or facilitate travel of another person with a view to exploitation, while his wife was charged with arranging or facilitating travel of another person with a view to exploitation.
The couple were not asked to enter pleas, but the court heard they have indicated not guilty pleas.
They deny there was a criminal conspiracy, and will say no exploitation occurred, BBC reports.
Deputy Chief Magistrate, Tan Ikram, remanded them in custody ahead of their next appearance at the Old Bailey.
He lifted a reporting restriction on Nwamini, who was previously described as a child.
Due to the nature of the charge, the complainant still has anonymity despite the fact he is over 18
The court, thereafter, fixed August 4 as the date for the next hearing.
A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, had on Wednesday ordered the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to transmit the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the biodata information of an alleged to the Attorney General of the Federation for onward transmission to the UK to aid Ekweremadu’s trial.
The lawmaker’s lawyer, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), on June 27, urged Justice Inyang Ekwo to order the release of certain official documents of Ukpo domiciled with NIMC, Nigerian Immigration Service, and Stanbic-IBTC Bank for the purpose of effectively defending Ekweremadu in the UK.