Former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has been cleared of all bribery charges brought against her in the United Kingdom after a London court found her not guilty on all counts.
A jury at Southwark Crown Court in London returned unanimous not-guilty verdicts on Wednesday after more than 46 hours of deliberation, bringing to an end a lengthy corruption trial that attracted attention in both Nigeria and the UK.
Alison-Madueke, who served as Nigeria's Minister of Petroleum Resources between 2010 and 2015 under President Goodluck Jonathan, faced five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
British prosecutors had alleged that she received luxury benefits from oil and gas industry figures seeking access to lucrative contracts in Nigeria. They claimed she enjoyed what they described as "a life of luxury" in London funded by individuals linked to the oil sector.
However, Alison-Madueke consistently denied the allegations, insisting that she never accepted bribes and had no direct influence over the award of oil contracts.
During the trial, her defence team argued that expenses cited by prosecutors were either reimbursed by the Nigerian government for official duties or paid back by Alison-Madueke herself for personal spending.
Giving evidence before the court, the former minister described herself as "Madame Due Process", maintaining that she followed established procedures throughout her time in office.
The verdict marks a significant setback for British authorities, whose investigation into corruption allegations involving Alison-Madueke began more than a decade ago.
Reacting to the judgment, her lawyer said she was grateful to the jury for what he described as a fair assessment of the evidence.
"She is finally allowed to resume her private and public life with her reputation restored and enhanced," the lawyer said in a statement.
The lawyer added that Alison-Madueke had "unnecessarily endured the ordeal of being separated from her family over 11 years."
The case was one of the highest-profile corruption prosecutions involving a former Nigerian public official in the UK.
Also cleared by the jury were oil industry executive Olatimbo Ayinde and Alison-Madueke's brother, Doye Agama, who had faced related charges. Both men denied wrongdoing throughout the trial.
Alison-Madueke, the first woman to serve as Nigeria's petroleum minister and a former president of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), has faced multiple investigations and allegations since leaving office in 2015. Wednesday's verdict, however, brings an end to the UK criminal case against her, with the court finding insufficient evidence to convict on any of the charges.
