The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC is poised to collaborate with UK prosecutors in the trial of former Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke. A team from the anti-graft commission is expected in London to initiate this process by filing relevant documents. According to the Nation, the EFCC intends to share its findings and the Abuja high court’s forfeiture order concerning Diezani’s $2.5 million properties and vehicles with the UK court.
This development comes as Nigeria’s federal government has made a fresh request to the UK government for the extradition of Alison-Madueke, who has been in the UK since 2015 and is currently on trial in a London court.
The EFCC has hailed her appearance in court, stating that its pending charges against her in Nigeria are completely different from those she is facing in the UK. The commission has also obtained an arrest warrant and initiated extradition proceedings to bring the former minister back to Nigeria to face trial
In August, the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) alleged that Alison-Madueke had accepted bribes in return for awarding multi-million-pound oil and gas contracts. She is accused of benefiting from at least £100,000 in cash, chauffeur-driven cars, flights on private jets, luxury holidays for her family, and the use of multiple London properties.
The EFCC is seeking to be an interested party in the case to enable Nigeria to have access to assets that may be seized from the ex-minister. The commission has sufficient evidence to prosecute Alison-Madueke in Nigeria, where she is facing 13 counts of money laundering.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, has submitted a warrant of arrest and request to the Crown Prosecution Services of the United Kingdom for Alison-Madueke’s urgent extradition. However, extradition processes can be cumbersome and subject to the approval of the recipient country
