Today, Judge Giusy Barbara ruled
on the conviction of two middlemen in the scandal-ridden OPL 245 oil
field deal, in which she stated: "The management of oil companies Eni
(and Shell) were fully aware of the fact that part of the $1.092 billion
paid would have been used to compensate Nigerian public officials who
had a role in this matter and who were circling their prey like hungry
sharks,” - as reported by Reuters.
In response, Barnaby Pace, Oil Campaigner at Global Witness said:
"This
ruling will send shivers down the spines of the oil industry - and will
surely alarm Shell and Eni employees and shareholders who have been
repeatedly told that there was nothing amiss with the OPL 245 deal."
The
Milan judge made the comment in her written reasons for the September
conviction of Nigerian Emeka Obi and Italian Gianluca Di Nardo, both
middlemen in the OPL 245 deal, for corruption. The pair were sentenced
to four year jail terms.
Read more in this link.