Beatrice Ekweremadu has returned to Nigeria after serving her custodial sentence in the UK, even as British authorities recently rejected a formal request to transfer her husband, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, to a Nigerian facility to serve the remainder of his term.
Beatrice Ekweremadu, wife of former Nigerian Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, arrived at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, following her release from a United Kingdom correctional facility. Convicted in May 2023 for her role in a landmark organ-harvesting conspiracy, Mrs. Ekweremadu served approximately half of her four-year and six-month sentence, with her early release attributed to a combination of time spent on remand, good conduct, and a UK government initiative to alleviate prison overcrowding. While her return sparked celebratory gatherings in her hometown of Mpu, Enugu State, it also highlighted the continued legal isolation of her husband, who was identified by the Old Bailey as the “driving force” behind the plot to harvest a kidney from a 21-year-old Lagos street trader for their daughter, Sonia.
The former lawmaker’s prospects for a similar return were dealt a significant blow in late 2025 when the UK Home Office officially rejected a diplomatic plea from the Nigerian government. A high-powered delegation had sought a Prisoner Transfer Agreement (PTA) to allow Senator Ekweremadu to serve the remainder of his nine-year and eight-month sentence in a Nigerian prison. However, British authorities reportedly declined the request, citing concerns that “Nigeria could offer no guarantees that Ekweremadu would continue his prison sentence after being deported.” As Beatrice settles back into life in Nigeria, her husband and the medical middleman, Dr. Obinna Obeta, remain incarcerated in the UK, while their daughter continues to receive medical treatment in London.