A London court has heard allegations that a former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, engaged in what prosecutors described as extravagant spending in the United Kingdom, allegedly funded by bribes from oil industry figures.
Alison-Madueke, who served as Nigeria’s oil minister between 2010 and 2015, is standing trial at Southwark Crown Court, where prosecutors claim she was maintained in a life of luxury by businessmen seeking favourable oil contracts in Nigeria.
She has denied five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
The court was told that during a visit to Harrods in London in November 2013, the former minister allegedly ordered luxury items worth thousands of pounds, including expensive rugs.
A sales executive reportedly described her appearance at the time as glamorous and dressed in high-end clothing.
It was also alleged that she never paid for purchases herself, with bills said to have been settled by Nigerian businessmen linked to energy firms.
Prosecutors further alleged that Alison-Madueke was a frequent customer at luxury furniture and décor stores in London, sometimes using an alias, and that items bought on her behalf between 2012 and 2013 were valued at more than £370,000.
The court also heard claims of extensive shopping trips to china and silverware stores, where items were often bought but left uncollected.
According to the prosecution, payments for these purchases were allegedly made by businessmen who held lucrative contracts with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation at the time Alison-Madueke was in office.
The court also heard claims that millions of pounds were spent at Harrods over several years.
Further evidence presented included alleged shipments of luxury furniture from the United States to properties in London said to have been used by the former minister.
Photographs of one such property were shown to the jury. The court also heard testimony from a former driver who claimed to have collected Alison-Madueke and then-President Goodluck Jonathan from the same London address.
Additional allegations included the chartering of a private jet from the UK to Nigeria at a cost of over £89,000, as well as the delivery of large sums of cash to a London residence.
Prosecutors also referred to recorded phone conversations, recovered from Alison-Madueke’s phone, which they say point to disputes over gifts allegedly given to her.
The trial also involves other defendants, including Alison-Madueke’s brother, Doye Agama, a former bishop, who is accused of conspiracy to commit bribery, and oil industry executive Olatimbo Ayinde, who faces bribery-related charges. Both have denied the allegations.
The court also heard claims involving other oil executives accused of running shopping errands and pledging loyalty to the former minister, allegedly followed by the award of oil mining leases.
All the defendants have pleaded not guilty.
The trial is continuing.