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A London court has acquitted former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, of six bribery charges following a high-profile corruption trial.
Alison-Madueke, who served under former President Goodluck Jonathan from 2010 to 2015, faced five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery. She pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Prosecutors had alleged that the 65-year-old lived “a life of luxury” in London, funded by oil and gas industry figures seeking lucrative contracts in Nigeria, a country long plagued by corruption and mismanagement in its energy sector.
However, Alison-Madueke denied the allegations, insisting she never accepted bribes and had no direct influence over the awarding of government contracts.
She also previously served as president of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
Following a trial at Southwark Crown Court, the jury returned not guilty verdicts on all six charges after more than 46 hours of deliberation.
The acquittal represents a significant setback for British authorities, who had been investigating corruption allegations against Alison-Madueke for over a decade.
She was tried alongside oil executive Olatimbo Ayinde, who faced one count of bribery related to Alison-Madueke and another count involving a foreign public official, and her brother, Doye Agama, who was charged with conspiracy to commit bribery linked to payments made to his church.
Both Ayinde and Agama denied the charges and were also acquitted by the jury.
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