Diezani Alison-Madueke was Nigeria’s minister of petroleum resources from 2010 to 2015
A Nigerian oil minister went on “extravagant and excessive” spending sprees at high-end London stores with money from bribes by industry insiders, a London court has heard.
During a visit to Harrods in 2013, Diezani Alison-Madueke ordered thousands of pounds worth of rugs, including items by luxury brand Alexander McQueen, Southwark Crown Court was told.
Prosecutors allege the 65-year-old was provided with “a life of luxury in the United Kingdom” by those interested in Nigerian government contracts.
Alison-Madueke, who was Nigeria’s minister of petroleum resources between 2010 and 2015, denies five counts of accepting bribes and a charge of conspiracy to commit bribery.
Shopping Sprees and Luxury Purchases
The court heard that during the Harrods visit in November 2013, Alison-Madueke was allegedly accompanied by Nigerian businessman Kolawole Aluko and a security guard.
According to a sales executive at the store, the then-minister looked “extremely glamorous and was wearing very expensive clothing”.
Alison-Madueke was also a regular shopper at Vincenzo Cafferella, a decorative arts and furniture store in north London, where she was known as “Sharon D,” the court was told.
The prosecution alleges that between October 2012 and November 2013, Aluko bought various items, including lamps and tables, for Alison-Madueke costing more than £370,000.
The court also heard that Alison-Madueke would spend hours in Thomas Goode, a china and silverware shop in Mayfair, sometimes arriving with an entourage of four or five people. A worker recalled her saying:
“I don’t even know why I’m buying this, I haven’t got the room for it.”
Items were often bought but not collected, and Alison-Madueke never paid for them herself. Bills were understood to have been settled by Aluko and other Nigerian businessmen said to own energy companies with lucrative contracts from the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation during her tenure.
Additional Alleged Expenditures
- Shipments of furniture purchased for Alison-Madueke from a luxury store in Houston, Texas, for several London properties, allegedly provided by Nigerian businessman Benedict Peters.
- £89,410 to charter a jet from Luton to Lagos in January 2012.
- Delivery of £100,000 cash from a north London bank to a nearby flat.
Her driver reportedly collected both Alison-Madueke and then-President Goodluck Jonathan from one of the properties, the court heard.
Evidence from Seized Devices
Alison-Madueke’s phone, seized in 2015, revealed recorded conversations where she confronted Aluko over suggestions he had spoken about gifts given to her amid a deteriorating relationship.
In a conversation in May 2014, she allegedly said:
“I will be happy to escort all of you to jail along with myself… you’ll be shocked what I will do. I will come out and tell the Nigerian people this is what happened. Oh yes, I will blame myself… and then all of us go and sit on the gate let us see who survived.”
Other Alleged Bribery Involvement
Igho Sanomi, an oil executive whose company was awarded Nigerian state contracts between 2011 and 2015, is alleged to have carried out shopping errands in London for Alison-Madueke.
Text messages recovered from her phone allegedly show Sanomi pledging loyalty and agreeing to collect items such as Louis Vuitton hat boxes. By 2014, Sanomi expressed concern about their deteriorating relationship, describing himself as her “true soldier.” Three weeks later, his company was part of a consortium awarded a new oil mining lease.
Alison-Madueke’s brother, former bishop Doye Agama, 69, is charged with conspiracy to commit bribery, with prosecutors claiming he was paid £1.2m in bribes by Peters to induce Alison-Madueke to act improperly.
Also on trial is industry executive Olatimbo Ayinde, 54, charged with one count of bribery relating to Alison-Madueke and a separate count of bribery of a foreign public official. Both Agama and Ayinde deny the charges.
The trial continues.
