For nearly nine years, Olatimbo Ayinde, a Nigerian businesswoman and oil mogul, was investigated and prosecuted for corruption alongside Nigeria’s former petroleum minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

Ayinde, who is also a British citizen, was accused of bribery in a case the UK prosecutors brought against her and Alison-Madueke, amongst others.

Ayinde faced 2 bribery counts, including an allegation that she bribed Alison-Madueke, under section 1 of the Bribery Act 2010.

The second charge alleged that she bribed Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu in August 2015, when he was Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Kachikwu later became the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources and was not tried.

But on Wednesday, July 17, a jury at Southwark Crown Court in London cleared Ayinde of all charges and ended the legal battle that began with her arrest by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) in 2017.

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Ayinde’s business spans petroleum distribution, logistics, maritime services and infrastructure.

She has worked in the energy sector for more than 17.

In her defence, Ayinde said she was approached for a bribe by Kachikwu’s brother, Dumebi Kachikwu, and was told to “play along” when she reported the matter to the Department of State Services (DSS).

In March 2026, Nigeria’s Attorney General, who was in London during President Bola Tinubu’s state visit, sent a letter from the DSS to Ayinde’s legal team confirming that she had reported the...

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