The wife of Senator Ike Ekweremadu, Beatrice, sobbed almost uncontrollably in the witness stand at the Old Bailey on Tuesday, as she was cross-examined in the ongoing conspiracy to facilitate and arrange travel for the aim of exploitation trial involving the couple, Sonia, their daughter and Dr Obinna Obeta.
Led in cross-examination by the Crown’s Ms. Patterson, Mrs. Ekweremadu revealed that the trial has had a ripple effect on her family to the effect that both her own mother and the Senator’s mother have not been well since their arrests in June last year and this subsequent trial. Sobbing profusely, she said: “everything we worked for in 28 years is being destroyed and all sorts of stories are being told about us.’’
Though she admitted to the jury that the family lied that David Nwamini was Sonia’s maternal cousin, she told the court ‘l’ve already said we’re sorry, but that’s not who we are.”
When Ms. Patterson alleged that “you and your family brought him – Nwamini – to exploit him,” the mother of four replied and said: “that’s not true. I just wanted my daughter to get well like any other mother.’’ When Patterson claimed Mrs. Ekweremadu couldn’t have been telling the truth when she said both her and Sonia met Nwamini for lunch a second time in February of last year to thank him for wanting to donate his kidney to her, an agitated Mrs. Ekweremadu responded and told the prosecutor, “if it – the meeting- did not happen, let me not reach my house when I’m going home.”
The prosecution will start their closing speech today.
Earlier in the testimony, Patterson, in trying to establish the prosecution’s conspiracy, cited a November 1st 2021 message that her former Deputy Senate President husband had forwarded to her. She then asked Mrs Ekweremadu “what do you think that message- about cost of hotel accommodation- was about?” Ekweremadu told her: ”it’s self explanatory,” and that it was about “people coming up to be tested “ to determine if they matched Sonia’s situation.
When the junior prosecutor said it was payment and reward, the Senator’s wife disagreed. According to her: ”somebody coming to help you should not use their money.” When asked why she responded to her husband’s message, she told the barrister, “I didn’t know it would come to this.” Patterson continued and also asked “why didn’t you ask what the payment was about?”
Mrs Ekweremadu, whose three other children were watching from the public gallery -and Sonia in the dock – responded and said “I trust his sense of judgment. My husband is a good man and I’ve come to trust him.”