Former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani
Alison-Madueke, appeared before the Westminster Magistrates Court in the United
Kingdom on Monday, over an alleged £100,000 bribe.
The district judge, Michael Snow, granted Alison-Madueke a
£70,000 bail.
Snow further imposed other terms on Alison-Madueke including
an 11 pm to 6 am curfew, an electronic tag to be worn by her at all times and a
£70,000 surety to be paid before she could leave the court building.
During her appearance at Westminster Magistrates Court, she provided her name, date of birth, and address.
Although she did not formally enter a plea, her attorney,
Mark Bowen, informed the court that she would plead not guilty, Reuters
reported.
Her next court appearance will be at Southwark Crown Court,
which deals with serious criminal cases, on October 30.
Recall that in August, the UK’s National Crime Agency said
it suspected Diezani had accepted bribes in return for awarding
multi-million-pound oil and gas contracts.
In a statement published on its website, NCA said Diezani
“is alleged to have benefitted from at least £100,000 in cash, chauffeur-driven
cars, flights on private jets, luxury holidays for her family, and the use of
multiple London properties.
“Her charges also detail financial rewards including
furniture, renovation work and staff for the properties, payment of private
school fees, and gifts from high-end designer shops such as Cartier jewellery
and Louis Vuitton goods.”
In March 2023, the NCA also provided evidence to the US
Department of justice that enabled them to recover assets totalling USD 53.1
million linked to Diezan’s alleged corruption.
Head of the NCA’s international corruption unit, Andy Kelly
said the “charges are a milestone in what has been a thorough and complex
international investigation. Bribery is a pervasive form of corruption, which
enables serious criminality and can have devastating consequences for
developing countries. We will continue to work with partners here and overseas
to tackle the threat”, Kelly added.
In October 2015, Diezani and four other persons were
arrested in the UK over alleged bribery and money laundering offences.
A magistrate court in the UK granted Diezani bail but her
passport was seized while she was asked to report at the Charing Cross police
station.
Diezani was the minister of petroleum resources from 2010 to
2015 during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Shortly before Jonathan handed over to President Muhammadu
Buhari in 2015, she left the country.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission alleged that
the former minister stole $2.5 billion from the Nigerian government while she
was a minister.
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