A billionaire prince is facing a £1 million compensation bill after pulling out of a deal to buy a British couple’s seven-bedroom home.
Nigerian oil baron Prince Arthur Eze, 62, agreed to pay £5 million for Richard and Deborah Conway’s mansion in Mill Hill, exchanging contracts on the home in August 2015.
He then pulled out of the deal, forcing the Conways to take out an expensive bridging loan to complete their move to a new home in Cambridgeshire.

Mr Conway, 62, told the court he and his wife were approaching retirement and had wanted to “pay off all our debts and start again” when they struck the deal — through a “go-between” — with Prince Eze. The founder of West African oil exploration firm Atlas Oranto Petroleum is thought to be worth £2 billion. He has a fleet of Rolls-Royces and a private jet, and is known for his philanthropy.
The judge said the middleman had acted on Prince Eze’s authority, and that the deposit would count towards the damages payment.
By Tristan Kirk. This report first appeared in London’s Evening Standard.