TDA United Kingdom court has acquitted former Nigerian Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, of all bribery charges brought against her in a high-profile corruption case that has spanned more than a decade.
A jury at Southwark Crown Court in London on Wednesday found Alison-Madueke not guilty on five counts of accepting bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery.
The judgment brings an end to a lengthy legal battle that began with investigations by British authorities more than ten years ago.
Prosecutors had alleged that Alison-Madueke, who served as Nigeria’s petroleum minister between 2010 and 2015 under former President Goodluck Jonathan, received luxury benefits from oil industry figures seeking favorable treatment in the awarding of lucrative oil and gas contracts.
The former minister consistently denied the allegations, insisting throughout the trial that she neither solicited nor accepted bribes.
The trial, which commenced in January 2026, examined claims involving luxury properties, shopping expenses, private jet travel, and other benefits allegedly provided by business associates.
However, Alison-Madueke maintained that her expenditures were either officially funded, reimbursed, or personally financed.
Two co-defendants in the case, oil executive Olatimbo Ayinde and Alison-Madueke’s brother, Doye Agama, were also cleared of related charges.
Following the verdict, Alison-Madueke described the outcome as the end of an 11-year ordeal, expressing relief after years of legal scrutiny.
The acquittal represents a significant setback for UK anti-corruption investigators, who had viewed the prosecution as one of their most prominent international corruption cases.
Despite the acquittal in the UK criminal proceedings, the former minister has previously faced separate investigations and asset recovery actions in other jurisdictions relating to allegations of corruption and money laundering, matters that remain distinct from the bribery trial concluded in London.
