- Gets £70,000 bail in alleged £100,000 bribery trial
Nigeria’s former Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Allison-Madueke, made appearance in a United Kingdom court on Monday, facing charges of alleged bribery.
The ex-minister stands accused of accepting bribes including cash, luxury items, private jet flights and the use of upscale properties in the UK.
These were all reportedly in exchange for awarding lucrative oil contracts, among others.
She was arraigned at the Westminster Magistrates’ Court with the charges against her primarily related to events said to have occurred in London.
According to reports from Reuters, during the court proceedings, Diezani Allison-Madueke provided her name, date of birth, and address but was not required to enter a formal plea. Her lawyer, Mark Bowen, did indicate the she would be pleading not guilty to the charges.
Allegations against the 63-year-old former minister are connected to her tenure as petroleum minister from 2010 to 2015 during the administration of former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, while she also served as the president of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
The Prosecutor, Andy Young, said that the charges revolve around her alleged acceptance of various advantages, including cash and in-kind rewards, from individuals seeking to secure or maintain oil contracts valued at billions of dollars.
Andy Kelly, Head of National Crime Agency (NCA) International Corruption Unit, also said: “We suspect Diezani Allison-Madueke abused her power in Nigeria and accepted financial rewards for awarding multi-million-pound contracts. These charges are a milestone in what has been a thorough and complex international investigation.”
The NCA also revealed that Diezani Allison-Madueke is accused of benefitting from at least £100,000 (about N93,975,700 billion) in cash, chauffeur-driven cars, private jet flights, luxury family vacations, and the utilization of multiple properties in London.
These charges also encompass additional financial rewards, such as furniture, property renovations, staff for the properties, private school fees, as well as gifts from high-end designer stores, including Cartier and Louis Vuitton.
Despite vehemently denying these charges, Allison-Madueke has faced persistent corruption allegations since leaving office in 2015.
Currently residing in the affluent St John’s Wood area of West London, Allison-Madueke was initially arrested in 2015 but later underwent chemotherapy for breast cancer, according to her family.
At the time of her arrest, the NCA had announced the detention of five individuals in London on suspicion of international corruptipn without disclosing their identities.
The NCA confirmed that, as part of the ongoing investigation, assets worth millions of pounds have been frozen in connection with the case.
Earlier this year in a significant development, evidence provided by the NCA to the United States Department of Justice led to the recovery of $53.1 million (about N40,903.4billion) in assets linked to Diezani Allison-Madueke’s alleged corruption.
Meanwhile, efforts by the Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to extradite Diezani Allison-Madueke have encountered continuous obstacles.
She has become the second high-profile Nigerian politician in recent years to face prosecution in the UK, following the case of James Ibori, former state governor convicted of fraud and money laundering in 2012, who received a 13-year prison sentence.
