Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Wednesday, pleaded for clemency with the United Kingdom court that found Ike Ekweremadu and his wife, Beatrice guilty of organ trafficking
In a letter addressed to the Chief Clerk, the Central Criminal Court, Old Bailey, in London, the former President asked the Clerk to intervene and ensure the UK government tempered justice with mercy on the matter.
According to a report by The PUNCH, Ike Ekweremadu risks a 10 years imprisonment sentence in line with the Modern Slavery Act 2015 of the United Kingdom after a London court found him and his wife guilty of organ trafficking.
Ekweremadu and his wife had been remanded in custody of UK authorities and awaiting sentence on May 5 after they received complaints from a young man about their alleged plans to harvest his organ. The former lawmaker was subsequently found guilty of the charges by Mr Justice Johnson.
But, Obasanjo, in his letter dated April 3, 2023, said the Ekweremadus have learnt their lesson from the ordeal, urging the court and UK government to show clemency.
The letter read in part,
“Mr. Chief Clerk, I am very much aware of the current travails and conviction of Ike Ekweremadu and his wife in the United Kingdom resulting from their being charged with conspiring to arrange the travel of a 21-year-old from Nigeria to the UK in order to harvest organs for their daughter.
“I do realise the implications of their action and I dare say, it is unpleasant and condemnable and can’t be tolerated in any sane or civilised society.
“However, it is my fervent desire for very warm relations between the United Kingdom and Federal Republic of Nigeria; for his position as one of the distinguished Senators in the Nigerian Parliament, and also for the sake of their daughter in question whose current health condition is in danger and requires urgent medical attention, you will use your good offices to intervene and appeal to the court and the government of the United Kingdom to be magnanimous enough to temper justice with mercy and let punishment that may have to come take their good character and parental instinct and care into consideration.
“I do hope Mr. and Mrs. Ekweremadu have learnt from this distressing experience of theirs to guide their future actions or inactions so they will continue to be outstanding members of their community and will continue to contribute fully to the good of the society in particular and the nation in general.”
See Also: Former senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, wife found guilty of organ trafficking by UK court
