A UK Court based in London has acquitted Nigeria’s former Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke of bribery charges.
Alison-Madueke was discharged and acquitted of six-count charges by the London Southwark Crown Court. This includes a charge of conspiracy to commit bribery and five counts of accepting bribes, Bloomberg reported.
The acquittal came after over 46 hours of deliberation and debate on the charges by the Jury. The ruling also comes roughly 5 months after the trial began in the UK Court.
Notably, the former minister was tried alongside her brother Doye Agama who was charged with conspiracy to commit bribery. The case also included another Olatimbo Ayinde, who was charged with one count of bribery.
Alison-Madueke served as Nigeria’s Petroleum Minister from 2010 to 2015 under former President Goodluck Jonathan. She was accused of accepting bribes from people linked to energy firms during her tenure as minister.
