A former archbishop is to stand trial alongside his sister, the only woman ever to have led Opec, in a major corruption case involving luxury properties, private jets, and designer items.
Doye Agama, 68, the former archbishop of the Apostolic Pastoral Congress, is accused of receiving bribes for his church as part of a scheme prosecutors say was orchestrated by his sister, Diezani Alison-Madueke.
Alison-Madueke, 64, served as Nigeria’s petroleum minister between 2010 and 2015 and was elected president of Opec in 2014. She faces six bribery charges, including allegations that she accepted properties in London’s Regent’s Park and St John’s Wood, chauffeur-driven cars, chartered flights, jewellery from Cartier, and designer goods from Harrods and Louis Vuitton.
Her brother, Agama, is accused of conspiring with her and oil executives to “give a financial advantage” to his Christian Way of Life Church and the Apostolic Pastoral Congress.
Agama, who grew up in Southampton before reconnecting with his Nigerian family in the 1960s, was ordained bishop in Manchester and installed as archbishop in a ceremony at Southwark Cathedral in 2013. He retired from active leadership in 2021.
The trial is due to begin in January at Southwark Crown Court and is expected to last three months. Both siblings deny any wrongdoing.
