A UK court has cleared former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, of all six bribery charges brought against her.

On Wednesday, a court in London found her not guilty of the six charges after a corruption trial that examined allegations dating back more than a decade.

Diezani Alison-Madueke, who served as Nigeria’s Minister of Petroleum Resources from 2010 to 2015 under former President Goodluck Jonathan, had faced five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery. She denied all allegations.

Prosecutors alleged that the 65-year-old former minister enjoyed a luxurious lifestyle in London funded by oil and gas industry figures seeking major contracts in Nigeria. They claimed she benefited from improper payments linked to contract awards and corruption within the sector.

However, Alison-Madueke maintained that she never accepted bribes and did not have the authority to determine which companies received major government contracts.

After deliberating for more than 46 hours, the jury at Southwark Crown Court acquitted her of all six charges.

The verdict is considered a significant setback for British authorities, who have been investigating corruption allegations against Alison-Madueke for more than ten years.

The trial also involved oil industry executive Olatimbo Ayinde, who faced bribery-related charges, and Alison-Madueke’s brother, Doye Agama, who was charged with conspiracy to commit bribery. Both men denied the allegations and were also acquitted by the court.

Who Is Diezani Alison-Madueke?

Diezani Alison-Madueke was born on December 6, 1960, in Port Harcourt. She is a Nigerian politician and became the first woman to serve as president of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

She was appointed Nigeria’s Minister of Transportation in July 2007, later served as Minister of Mines and Steel Development in 2008, and in April 2010 became Nigeria’s first female Minister of Petroleum Resources.

In November 2014, she made history again by becoming the first female president of OPEC during the organization’s 166th Ordinary Meeting in Vienna.