Alex Beard, Glencore's former head of oil trading, has pleaded not guilty to two bribery charges at London's Southwark Crown Court. The 59-year-old denied two counts of conspiracy to make corrupt payments in a case brought by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) on Thursday.
Mr Beard is alleged to have been involved in a conspiracy to make corrupt payments to government or state-owned oil company officials in Nigeria between 2010 and 2014, and in Cameroon between 2007 and 2014.
His former deputy, Andrew Gibson, 66, also appeared in court and denied four counts of conspiracy to make corrupt payments in Nigeria, Cameroon, and Côte d’Ivoire. Mr Gibson, Glencore’s former head of oil operations, also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of conspiracy to falsify documents.
Four other former Glencore traders – Martin Wakefield, David Perez, Paul Hopkirk, and Ramon Labiaga – previously pleaded not guilty to all charges in the same case last year. The six defendants are due to stand trial next year.