By Promise Eze
Sonia, Ekweremadu’s daughter, who is currently undergoing dialysis, said she feels guilty about her parents’ conviction.
Recall that the former Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, his wife, Beatrice, and a doctor, Obinna Obeta, were sentenced to prison for organ trafficking in the United Kingdom.
The trio was found guilty by the Old Bailey in March for criminally conspiring to arrange the travel of a young man with a view to exploiting him for his kidney for use by Sonia.
Speaking to the BBC in an interview on Friday, Sonia expressed her guilt over her parent’s ordeal. She said, “Seeing my parents in that situation was a lot. It’s sad, it’s really been hard to wrap my head around it.”
The Nigerian lawmaker was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison, Beatrice would serve a four-year and six-month term, and Obeta bagged 10 years for his role in the crime.
According to reports, the victim, a 21-year-old Lagos street trader identified as David Nwamini, was lured to the United Kingdom by Obeta who was contacted by the Ekweremadus to facilitate the organ transplant.
David was said to have been presented as Sonia’s cousin willing to donate his kidney, but the plan fell apart after doctors assigned to carry out the £80,000 private procedure at the Royal Free Hospital in London couldn’t be convinced.
When asked what she knew about the man who was supposed to donate his kidney to her, Sonia said she wasn’t involved in the process because her family handled all her medical needs. Sonia described her condition as Nephrotic syndrome, a kind of kidney disorder that makes the body pass too much protein in urine.
In an impact statement read in court on Friday, David said he is scared of returning to Nigeria over fears that he may be arrested or killed.
He added that the Ekweremadus are dangerous and someone visited his father in Nigeria to pressure him to drop the case. “I worry for my safety in Nigeria. Those people can do anything. I think they could arrest me or kill me in Nigeria,” he said.
The lawmaker’s daughter stated that she personally disagreed with the conviction of her parents who were only trying to find a solution to her health challenge.
“I understand the conviction; however, I personally disagree with it. That is from a very biased perspective as their daughter, I will obviously always back my parents,” she said.
