Italian prosecutors have asked that two oil companies, Eni and Shell, be fined while some of their executives, both present and former including Eni’s Chief Executive Officer, Claudio Descalzi, be sentenced to prison in a long-running trial bordering on alleged corruption in oil field purchase in Nigeria. Prosecutors on Tuesday told a court sitting in Milan court, to jail Descalzi for eight years and Malcolm Brinded, Shell’s former head of upstream, for seven years and four months. All the defendants denied any wrongdoing on the argument that the purchase price was paid into an official Nigerian government account with all subsequent transfers being beyond their control. There are 11 other defendants in the matter including former Eni Chief Executive, Paolo Scaroni, for whom prosecutors also sought an eight-year sentence. No date has been given for final ruling in the matter but further hearing has been fixed for September.

Source: Nigerian Tribune July 22, 2020 18:56 UTC