The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), on Sunday, confirmed the age of the alleged victim of organ harvesting, David Nwamini, as 21; contradicting the claims of prosecutors in London.
Mr. Isah Idris, the comptroller general of the NIS, in a Zoom briefing with journalists, said Nwanini applied for his international passport which was issued after thorough checks by the passport issuing agency.
He said the documents provided by Nwamini from the National Population Commission (NPC) and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) gave his date of birth as October 12, 2000.
He added that Nwanini was captured for the international passport on November 2, 2021, at the Gwagwalada office of the agency.
The London Metropolitan Police on Thursday charged Nigeria former Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu and wife, Beatrice for allegedly trafficking Nwanini with the aim of harvesting his kidney.
On the same day, the Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court in London denied the couple bail.
The UK prosecutors have charged the Ekweremadu for allegedly bringing a 15-year-old boy from Nigeria to the UK with the claim that he was to be given a better life in the UK but was actually to harvest his organ.
The prosecutors reportedly informed the court that Ekweremadu procured a passport for the boy and claimed he was 21 years old but the prosecutors discovered that he was 15 years old.
Pictures of Nwamini’s international passport later emerged on social media indicating his age as 21, contrary to what the prosecutors in London presented in court.
The Ekweremadus are believed to have facilitated Nwamini’s trip after he agreed to donate a kidney to their sick daughter.
However, upon arriving in the UK, the young man is believed to have told the police there that he is an underage and not 21 years old as stated in his passport.
According to Nigeria Immigration boss, neither the Met Police who charged the senator to court nor the senator himself has contacted the NIS since the case went public.
Some lawyers have also argued that it is illegal for anyone to be procured to donate an organ in the UK, even if the person is an adult.
The trial of the Ekweremadus continues on July 7 in the UK.
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