Diezani Spent £140,000 In One Day On Furniture – UK Prosecutor

The prosecutor, Alexandra Healy, in the ongoing trial of former Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke, told Judge Michael Snow of Southwark Crown Court, London, that the former minister spent £140,000 in a single day on high-end furniture.

Healy, who made the allegation at the resumed hearing of the case on Monday, also presented evidence to support her claims.

The prosecutor outlined to jurors the defendant’s extravagant spending spree at a luxury antiques store in the capital.

The 69-year-old former minister, Agama and oil industry executive Olatimbo Ayinde, is being prosecuted in court on bribery charges.

Alison-Madueke was arraigned on a five-count charge of accepting bribes and an additional count of conspiracy to commit bribery, relating to her tenure as Nigeria’s Minister for Petroleum Resources from 2010 to 2015 under the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

She was accused of accepting “financial or other advantages” from individuals linked to Atlantic Energy and SPOG Petrochemical groups between 2011 and 2015.

The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.

At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, Healy told the judge that as much as £140,000 was spent in a single day on high-end furniture, bespoke lighting, and decorative art, allegedly paid for through intermediaries during her time in office.

The prosecutor last week accused Alison-Madueke of using her brother’s church, the Apostolic Pastoral Congress, to conceal bribes disguised as charitable donations.

Healy stated there was an “overwhelming inference to be drawn” that a bribe had been hidden behind a charitable donation.

She alleged that, “A businessman offered £1.1mn to fund a property purchase for Agama’s church in Manchester, but the name of the donor had been given incorrectly when the vendors’ representatives queried the source of funds.

“It was significant that the name had been mistakenly listed, given the size of the planned donation. It happened by circuitous means that are indicative of wrongdoing,” she told the court.

Healy also informed the judge that the former OPEC president threatened to inform the authorities of all their alleged illegal activities after she learnt of an apparent plot to “take her down.”

But the former minister denied the allegations through her lawyer, Jonathan Laidlaw, who claimed that his client had no power to influence the awards of government contracts.

Laidlaw also told the court that none of the other individuals named in the charges against Alison-Madueke had been charged, nor had Britain attempted to extradite them for trial.

The public gallery was filled with supporters from the Ijaw community who had flown in specifically.