<p class="Paragraph-styles__ParagraphStyled-sc-ffb5f5ba-0 fqhmpl" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variant-emoji: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; font-family: 'BBC Reith Serif', BBCReithSerif-fallback, serif; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-language-override: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #202224; letter-spacing: -0.36px;">A former Nigerian oil minister has been cleared of taking bribes from wealthy oil executives in the form of luxury home stays and lavish spending sprees in the UK.

<p class="Paragraph-styles__ParagraphStyled-sc-ffb5f5ba-0 fqhmpl" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variant-emoji: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; font-family: 'BBC Reith Serif', BBCReithSerif-fallback, serif; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-language-override: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #202224; letter-spacing: -0.36px;">Diezani Alison-Madueke, 65, was found not guilty after a trial at London's Southwark Crown Court of five counts of accepting bribes and a charge of conspiracy to commit bribery.

<p class="Paragraph-styles__ParagraphStyled-sc-ffb5f5ba-0 fqhmpl" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variant-emoji: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; font-family: 'BBC Reith Serif', BBCReithSerif-fallback, serif; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-language-override: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #202224; letter-spacing: -0.36px;">Alison-Madueke was Nigeria's oil minister between 2010 and 2015 and the first female president of the oil exporters group Opec.

<p class="Paragraph-styles__ParagraphStyled-sc-ffb5f5ba-0 fqhmpl" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variant-emoji: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; font-family: 'BBC Reith Serif', BBCReithSerif-fallback, serif; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-language-override: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #202224; letter-spacing: -0.36px;">The verdict is a blow for the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA), which had been investigating one of Africa's most prominent political figures for 13 years.

<p class="Paragraph-styles__ParagraphStyled-sc-ffb5f5ba-0 fqhmpl" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variant-emoji: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; font-family: 'BBC Reith Serif', BBCReithSerif-fallback, serif; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-language-override: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #202224; letter-spacing: -0.36px;">From the start of the trial in January, defence lawyers questioned the fairness of the prosecution's case, suggesting vital documents showing Alison-Madueke's innocence had gone missing in Nigeria.

<p class="Paragraph-styles__ParagraphStyled-sc-ffb5f5ba-0 fqhmpl" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variant-emoji: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; font-family: 'BBC Reith Serif', BBCReithSerif-fallback, serif; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-language-override: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #202224; letter-spacing: -0.36px;">

<p class="Paragraph-styles__ParagraphStyled-sc-ffb5f5ba-0 fqhmpl" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variant-emoji: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 18px; line-height: 26px; font-family: 'BBC Reith Serif', BBCReithSerif-fallback, serif; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-language-override: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #202224; letter-spacing: -0.36px;">

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