Ex-Minister threatens to expose her partners in alleged corruption dealings

According to the former Petroleum Minister, who is currently facing multi-billion dollar fraud and money laundering charges both home and abroad, she no longer cares about protecting co-conspirators, Kola Aluko and Jide Omokore, Premium Times reports.

In fact, she says that she is ready to go to jail because she knows where she and her partners will be kept once she reveals the truth.

This is all revealed by Mrs. Alison-Madueke in a recorded conversation with Mr Aluko recorded by herself on May 14, 2014.

In the conversation, recently recovered by investigators, the former minister appears to be very angry.

In her anger, she admits to helping out co-conspirators in multi-billion dollars Strategic Alliance Agreements (SAAs) deals.

ALSO READ: US seizes properties worth $144m from Alison-Madueke

She also had another conversation with another unknown recipient.

In this second conversation, Mrs Alison-Madueke dares Mr Aluko to expose the details of their dealings, adding that he should get ready to face the consequences.

Here she adds, that she is ready to tell Nigerians everything, even if it takes her, along with Aluko and Omokore to jail.

She also chastens Mr Aluko for buying the Galatical Star, a $80 million “super yacht”, instead of simply renting it for two weeks instead of buying one.

“You and Jide [i.e., OMOKORE] had some of the most support that we could possibly give. At a time when we’re not doing anything else, we stuck our necks out regarding the SAA and we supported it. [INAUDIBLE] How the two of you have ruined it is incredulous and incredible to all of us.

“I spoke to you several times about your general behaviour, acquisition of assets, etc., asking you to be a bit more careful because [INAUDIBLE] will start following you. I remember we had this open discussion more than once. You kept telling me that there was no issue because you did it in a certain way, you did it in a certain—and I kept telling you that it doesn’t matter how you do it.

“Once you start acquiring, acquiring, acquiring at a certain level, then you’ll be—whether you like it or not, whether it was done in the most transparent—you understand?— the manner or not, because they will want to trace where it came from. This is an age of terrorism.

“If you want to hire a yacht, you lease it for two weeks or whatever. You don’t go and sink funds into it at this time when Nigerian oil and gas sector is under all kinds of watch, as we have been for some time, and where Atlantic [i.e., AEDC and/or AEBD] itself has been the subject of all kinds of speculation.

“I said tell him [i.e., ALUKO] to bring everything out, and then you know what will happen? No problem, I will be happy to escort all of you to jail along with myself. I said, in fact, you’ll be shocked by what I will do. Because when it comes to that, I will come out and tell the Nigerian people this is what happened.

“Oh, yes, I will blame myself, but it [INAUDIBLE] place and everything. Anything they want to say, I am happy to go. But I will come out openly and say it so that they can judge me openly. And then all of us go and sit on the gate. Let us see who survived [INAUDIBLE], me or you."

“The furniture they gave me didn’t come to more than four million dollars, altogether. [INAUDIBLE] it is the truth. I was with [INAUDIBLE].”

These conversations are now part of a civil complaint by the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) seeking the forfeiture of over $144 million slush fund.

Mrs Alison-Madueke, Mr Aluko and Mr. Omokore have been listed as persons of interest in the civil complaint filed in the US District Court, Houston, Texas.

In Nigeria, a Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered for the forfeiture of N34 billion linked to her that is in several Nigerian banks.

Her accomplice, Mr Omokore, has been slammed with a nine-count charge of criminal diversion of about $1.6 billion of proceeds from sales of petroleum products belonging to the Nigerian government.

The Nigerian government is also trying to freeze multi-billion dollar assets, which include the previously mentioned yacht and three private jets, that belong to Aluko and Omokore.