British prosecutors have accused former Nigerian oil minister Diezani Alison-Madueke of funding an extravagant lifestyle with bribes allegedly received while she was in office, as her long-running corruption trial opened in London.
Alison-Madueke, 65, appeared on Tuesday before the Southwark Crown Court, where prosecutors outlined allegations that she accepted multiple bribes between 2011 and 2015 during her tenure as Nigeria’s minister of petroleum resources under former president Goodluck Jonathan.
The prosecution told the court that individuals seeking access to highly profitable oil and gas contracts with Nigeria’s state-owned petroleum entities provided the former minister with substantial financial and material benefits.
Prosecutors argued that such benefits were improper, given her position of authority over government-owned oil institutions.
According to the charges, Alison-Madueke received cash payments and luxury perks from individuals linked to Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemical, companies that later secured contracts with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation or its subsidiaries.
The court heard that the alleged benefits included £100,000 in cash, chauffeur-driven vehicles, private jet flights, and the refurbishment and staffing of several properties in London.
The prosecutors also claimed she received payments covering school fees for her son, designer goods from luxury retailers such as Harrods and Louis Vuitton, and additional private air travel.
Alison-Madueke, who also served as president of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) between 2014 and 2015, has faced multiple legal actions across several jurisdictions.
In Nigeria, courts ordered the seizure of properties linked to her in 2017, valued at several million dollars.
Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission confirmed that there are still pending cases against the former minister in the country.
In the United Kingdom, she was formally charged in 2023 following an investigation by the National Crime Agency, which alleged she abused her office to secure personal financial rewards tied to multimillion-pound contracts.
Alison-Madueke has been on bail since her arrest in London in October 2015 and has consistently denied all charges.
Two other defendants, including her brother, Doye Agama, and Olatimbo Ayinde, are standing trial alongside her on related bribery allegations.
The presiding judge, Justice Justine Thornton, said the trial is expected to conclude by late April.
