Ex-minister Diezani Makes An Appearance In A UK Court And Granted £70,000 Bail
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| Diezani Alison-Madueke |
Diezani Alison-Madueke, a former minister of petroleum, was charged with bribery and appeared before Westminster Magistrate's Court in London, England on Monday, October 2.
According to Reuters, the former minister was accused of accepting bribes in the form of money, opulent goods, private jet travel, and the use of upscale residences in Britain in exchange for approving oil contracts.
Alison-Madueke was detained in London in 2015 shortly after her term as an official ended, and she was charged with six bribery offenses in August. She has resided in St John's Wood, a pricey district of London, for the last eight years while on police bail.
She spoke just to provide her name, date of birth, and residence when she appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court. While her attorney Mark Bowen informed the court that she would be entering a not guilty plea, she was not formally asked to do so.
According to Reuters, the accusations made against her and read out in court all concerned alleged incidents that happened in London when she was a Nigerian minister.
She is accused of accepting a wide range of benefits, both in cash and in kind, from those hoping to win or maintain their position as winners of oil contracts, which the prosecutor estimates to be worth billions of dollars overall.
The benefits included a cash transfer of £100,000 ($121,620), the payment of her son's tuition for private school, and the usage and renovation of multiple opulent homes in London and the English countryside.
Additionally, they covered the use of a Range Rover, paying for chauffeured automobiles, furniture, and purchases from the upscale London department store Harrods and Vincenzo Caffarella, which sells Italian antiques and decorative arts.
Alison-Madueke was granted bail by District Judge Michael Snow with conditions that included an 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, the wearing of an electronic tag at all times, and the payment of a 70,000-pound surety before she was allowed to leave the courthouse.
She will make her next court appearance on October 30, at Southwark Crown Court, which handles serious criminal cases.
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