The human trafficking trial of former Senate Deputy President Ike Ekweremadu and his wife, Beatrice, resumed in a London court on Tuesday.
However, both anti- and pro-Ekweremadu protests were held in front of the court before the hearings began.
According to AFP, there was a demonstration before the court proceedings, with some in support of the politician and others opposing him.
In June 2022, the congressman and his wife were arrested at Heathrow Airport in London on suspicion of flying a young guy from Nigeria to the UK to harvest his organs.
The transplant was allegedly intended for Ekweremadu’s daughter, Sonia, who is now hospitalized with a kidney-related disease.
Some Nigerians had in October 2022 protested in Abuja against the continued detention of the lawmaker who has now spent 223 days in the custody of UK authorities.
Protesters, once again, gathered at the court on Tuesday to either support the embattled lawmaker or protest his continued detention in UK custody.
“I mean, this case is unbelievable,” one protester, Citizen Gbola, was quoted by AFP as saying.
“Where else in the world would you have a deputy senate president, who is still a serving senator, he’s still getting his regular wage?”
According to Daily Mail, Sonia couldn’t make it to court on Tuesday but sought permission with a psychological report by her team claiming she was not fit to stand trial.
She had pleaded not guilty to the allegation of trafficking a homeless man into the UK to harvest his organs for herself, when she appeared in court on November 7, 2022.
Ohanaeze Youths Claims EFCC Is Working Against Ekweremadu
The young man, who levelled the allegation against the Ekweremadus, told Staines Police Station that he was made to undergo some medical tests, none of which he consented to.
A 50-year-old medical doctor from South London, Obinna Obeta, was also arrested in connection to the allegation.
During proceedings at the Old Bailey court, Ekweremadu who wore a grey tracksuit top only said “Yes, miss” when asked to confirm his name.
Seated beside the lawmaker in the dock and dressed in black was his wife who was granted bail in July 2022 while her husband was said to be a flight risk.
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