At Southwark Crown Court, prosecutors have detailed lavish spending allegedly funded by bribes to Nigeria’s former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, including over £2 million spent at luxury department store Harrods.
Alison-Madueke, 65, faces charges of accepting bribes and conspiracy to commit bribery between 2010 and 2015. The court heard that she allegedly lived a “life of luxury” in the United Kingdom, financed by figures in the energy sector seeking government contracts in Nigeria.
Prosecutor Alexandra Healy KC told the jury that the former minister’s spending was so excessive she once remarked, “I don’t even know why I’m buying this, I haven’t got the room for it,” during a shopping trip at high-end Mayfair retailer Thomas Goode.
Key allegations presented in court include:
- More than £2 million spent at Harrods.
- £370,740 at Marylebone antiques dealer Vincenzo Caffarella.
- £117,224.33 at Thomas Goode, which sells fine china and silverware.
- Use of multi-million-pound properties in London and Buckinghamshire, with renovation costs totaling £4.6 million.
- Access to a private jet, chauffeur-driven cars, and domestic staff.
The court was told that one of the alleged financiers, Kolawole Aluko, paid for luxury bathroom fittings worth over £38,000 that were never collected. In recorded conversations from 2014, Alison-Madueke expressed concerns that Aluko had been disclosing their arrangement, stating she would “escort all of you to jail along with myself” if exposed.
Also on trial are:
- Olatimbo Ayinde, 54, a Nigerian oil company owner, who denies two counts of bribery.
- Doye Agama, 69, Alison-Madueke’s brother and a former archbishop, who denies conspiracy to commit bribery. Prosecutors allege £1 million was funneled through his church to influence the minister.
Alison-Madueke has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The trial continues.
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