Jeremy Johnson, judge of Central Criminal Court, Old Bailey, UK, said Obinna Obeta, the doctor who acted as a middleman for the Ekweremadus, had a kidney transplant in 2021.
The judge noted that Obeta learnt from his experience and was able to identify loopholes in the system in 2021.
“You Obina Obeta underwent a kidney transplant at the Royal Free Hospital in London in 2021,” the judge said.
“You said that you and your donor were cousins and that was a lie.
“The clinicians at the Royal Free and independent accessors at the human tissue authority were taken in by your lie. They believed that the donor was acting altruistically as a good Samaritan.
“The transplant went ahead. There is no evidence that the donor has been given the necessary aftercare. It is not necessary for me to make a finding as to whether you exploited the donor.
“But what is clear is that you learned from your experience that it was possible to manipulate and corrupt the regulatory system by using a fabricated affidavit, by lying about your relationship with the donor and by coaching the donor to lie.”
Ike Ekweremadu, former deputy senate president, his wife Beatrice and Obeta were convicted of conspiracy to organ trafficking.
While Obeta got a 10-year sentence, Ekweremadu was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison.
Beatrice, his wife, was sentenced to four years and six months in jail due to her “more limited involvement”.
Source: Top Stories
