Former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources and former President of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Diezani Alison-Madueke, has been cleared of all bribery charges by a court in the United Kingdom.
In a statement released by her defence team, Alison-Madueke was acquitted of six counts of bribery by the Southwark Crown Court in London.
The definitive ruling follows a high-profile, five-month trial that drew significant international attention.
The legal battle was initiated by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA). The charges were brought forward after a lengthy investigation into alleged offences said to have occurred between 2011 and 2015, spanning her tenure as Nigeria’s oil minister.
Throughout the proceedings, prosecutors had accused Alison-Madueke of receiving financial and other benefits from individuals linked to energy companies.
The Crown alleged that these incentives were tied to securing lucrative contracts with Nigeria’s state-owned petroleum corporation.
With the Southwark Crown Court’s final verdict, the long-standing legal scrutiny against the former minister regarding these specific UK charges has come to an end.
The acquittal marks a major victory for Alison-Madueke and her legal team after years of intense global and domestic investigation.
