Former minister of petroleum resources Diezani Alison-Madueke on Monday appeared before the Southwark Crown Court in London, United Kingdom, for the preliminary hearing of her bribery trial.
The case was listed before Justice Thornton in Court 8 and held ahead of the commencement of the full trial scheduled for January 26.
Mrs Alison-Madueke was charged in August 2023 by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) over allegations that she accepted bribes in return for awarding oil and gas contracts while in office.
At the time of filing the charges, the NCA said it suspected that the former minister “abused her position in Nigeria and accepted financial rewards for awarding multi-million-pound oil and gas contracts.”
According to the agency, the alleged benefits included cash payments totalling at least £100,000, as well as the use of chauffeur-driven cars, private jet flights and access to properties in London.
The indictment also includes claims of payments for furniture, renovation works, staff, school fees and items from designer shops.
Alison-Madueke served as minister of petroleum resources between 2010 and 2015 under the administration of former president Goodluck Jonathan and was elected president of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries in 2014.
In October 2023, a Westminster magistrates’ court granted her bail in the sum of £70,000.
The court also imposed conditions, including an 11pm to 6am curfew, the use of an electronic monitoring tag and the provision of a surety.
In January 2025, the Nigerian government and the United States signed an asset return agreement on $52.88 million recovered from assets linked to Diezani Alison-Madueke.
The United States authorities said the funds were connected to the purchase of luxury properties in California and New York, as well as a superyacht known as the Galactica Star, using proceeds from alleged illicit contracts.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has also pursued assets linked to the former minister in Nigeria.
Two other defendants, Doye Agama and Olatimbo Ayinde, are facing related bribery charges in the case.
Agama appeared through a video link, while Ayinde was present in court.
The trial is expected to run for several weeks.
