Former Nigerian oil minister Diezani Alison-Madueke accepted bribes in the form of luxury goods, high-end property use, and other benefits from oil industry figures seeking lucrative contracts, British prosecutors told a London court on Tuesday.
The allegations were laid out as Alison-Madueke’s long-awaited corruption trial opened at Southwark Crown Court, marking one of the most prominent cases involving a former African energy official in the UK.
The trial is being closely watched in Nigeria and abroad, as Alison-Madueke once held enormous influence over Africa’s largest oil producer and briefly led the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) — becoming the first woman to hold either role.
Prosecutors say the case highlights how political power in Nigeria’s energy sector was allegedly leveraged for personal benefit during a period when billions of dollars flowed through the country’s oil and gas industry.
Alison-Madueke, 65, served as Nigeria’s Minister for Petroleum Resources between 2010 and 2015 under former President Goodluck Jonathan. She denies all charges against her.
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Opening the case, prosecutor Alexandra Healy told jurors that Alison-Madueke “enjoyed a life of luxury in London,” funded by individuals hoping to win or retain contracts with Nigerian state-owned oil companies.
According to Healy, the former minister was granted the use of luxury properties and provided with expensive goods by people who “clearly believed she would use her influence to favor them.”
While the prosecution acknowledged there is no evidence that Alison-Madueke directly awarded contracts improperly, Healy stressed that, given her position, “she should not have accepted benefits from those doing extremely lucrative business with government-owned entities.”
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Alison-Madueke was charged in 2023 with five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery, all of which she denies.
She is standing trial alongside Olatimbo Ayinde, a 54-year-old oil industry executive charged with bribery connected to Alison-Madueke and a separate count of bribing a foreign public official. Ayinde has pleaded not guilty.
Also implicated is Alison-Madueke’s brother, Doye Agama, a 69-year-old former archbishop, who is charged with conspiracy to commit bribery. He is following the proceedings via video link due to medical reasons and also denies the allegations.
Prosecutors allege Alison-Madueke received multiple financial and material benefits between 2011 and 2015, including: Use of a chauffeur-driven vehicle, Access to a private jet, Large quantities of luxury goods, An extravagant shopping trip to Harrods in 2013.
The court also heard that Nigerian businessman Benedict Peters, who is not on trial, allegedly paid for her son’s school fees. Peters is named in the indictment but has not been charged.
The case forms part of a broader international effort to recover stolen assets and prosecute corruption linked to Nigeria’s oil sector, which has long been plagued by transparency concerns.
Meanwhile, Nigerian authorities continue to pursue separate civil and criminal cases connected to Alison-Madueke’s time in office, including asset recovery actions in multiple jurisdictions.
