British prosecutors have accused former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources and ex-OPEC President, Diezani Alison-Madueke, of funding a “life of luxury” through bribes allegedly received while she was in public office, as her long-running corruption trial formally opened at the Southwark Crown Court in London.
Alison-Madueke, 65, appeared in the dock on Tuesday at the commencement of proceedings relating to multiple counts of bribery said to have occurred between 2011 and 2015, during her tenure as Nigeria’s oil minister under former President Goodluck Jonathan. She has consistently denied all charges.
According to the prosecution, individuals and corporate entities seeking lucrative oil and gas contracts with Nigeria’s state-owned petroleum company provided Alison-Madueke with substantial financial and material benefits. Prosecutors told the court that these benefits were improperly received in exchange for influence over contract awards involving the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its subsidiaries.
The Crown Prosecution Service alleged that, as a senior public official, Alison-Madueke was legally prohibited from accepting any form of benefit from persons or companies doing business with government-owned entities, particularly within a sector as commercially significant as oil and gas.
Central to the prosecution’s case are allegations that Alison-Madueke received “financial or other advantages” from individuals linked to the Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemical groups—companies said to have secured oil-related contracts during the relevant period. Prosecutors contend that these advantages extended beyond direct cash payments to include high-value non-monetary benefits.
Among the alleged inducements outlined in court were £100,000 in cash, the use of chauffeur-driven vehicles, private jet flights to Nigeria, and the refurbishment and staffing costs of multiple London properties. Additional counts allege that she received payment of school fees for her son, luxury goods from high-end retailers such as Harrods and Louis Vuitton, and further private aviation services.
Alison-Madueke’s legal exposure is not limited to the United Kingdom. She has been the subject of multiple investigations and proceedings in several jurisdictions, including the United States and Nigeria. In 2017, Nigerian courts ordered the forfeiture of several properties linked to her, valued at millions of dollars.
Confirming ongoing domestic proceedings, a spokesperson for Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) stated that there remain “subsisting cases” against the former minister, although no further details were provided.
Alison-Madueke was first arrested in London in October 2015 and has remained on bail since that time. Formal charges were filed against her in 2023, following years of investigation by the UK National Crime Agency (NCA). At the time, the NCA stated that it suspected she had abused her public office by accepting financial rewards in return for awarding multi-million-pound contracts.
Two other defendants—Doye Agama, Alison-Madueke’s brother, and Olatimbo Ayinde—are standing trial alongside her on related bribery charges. Prosecutors told the court that all three defendants maintained UK residential addresses during the period in which the alleged offences were committed.
Presiding judge Justice Justine Thornton indicated that the court expects the trial to conclude by April 24, subject to the progress of evidence and submissions.
