Ex-Glencore Executives Must Wait Until 2027 for Bribery Trial

By Katharine Gemmell

October 09, 2024 at 6:20AM EDT

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - JULY 05: A view of the court building as US actor Kevin Spacey, who is facing 12 allegations of sexual offenses against four men in London and Gloucestershire between 2005 and 2013, arrives at Southwark Crown Court in London, United Kingdom on July 05, 2023. (Photo by Rasid Necati Aslim/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) (Rasid Necati Aslim/Photographer: Rasid Necati Asli)

(Bloomberg) -- A group of former Glencore Plc executives accused of bribery and corruption in West Africa by the UK will have to wait until 2027 to face a trial.

England’s criminal courts are suffering from a crippling backlog of cases exacerbated by years of underfunding, the coronavirus pandemic and lawyer strikes.

A judge set a trial date for June 1, 2027 to hear the Serious Fraud Office’s case at London’s Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday. It’s expected to run for as long as 6 months.

Alex Beard, the former head of oil at the commodities giant, and Andy Gibson, ex-head of oil operations, are accused of conspiring to make corrupt payments to government officials and state-owned oil firm employees in Nigeria, Cameroon and the Ivory coast more than a decade ago.

Beard’s lawyer previously indicated he would plead not guilty.

Alongside them, former Glencore employees Paul Hopkirk, Ramon Labiaga, Martin Wakefield and David Perez are charged with corruption.