Nigerian Presidency rejects speculation on Tinubu FBI files, clarifying the FOIA case as a civil records dispute with 399 pages released under redactions

Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga issued a detailed statement in Abuja on 3 September 2026 clarifying the nature of an ongoing civil case before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia involving President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

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The Presidency rejected speculation that proceedings amount to a criminal action, describing them instead as a routine Freedom of Information Act dispute over historical records held by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Mr Onanuga explained that the matter began in 2022 when American transparency activist Aaron Greenspan submitted FOIA requests seeking documents linked to President Tinubu and others connected with a Chicago heroin trafficking investigation from the early 1990s.

After agencies withheld certain material or declined to confirm its existence, Mr Greenspan filed Civil Action No. 23-1816 in 2023. The court later allowed President Tinubu to join as an intervenor to protect privacy interests.

Several agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, the Department of State, the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service, successfully argued a Glomar defence and were removed from the case.

The FBI and DEA remained and, in compliance with orders from Judge Beryl A. Howell, produced 399 pages of records with portions redacted under established United States law. Mr Greenspan has challenged those redactions, citing the public interest in full disclosure.

The FBI, DEA and President Tinubu’s legal team have defended the withholdings on grounds that include grand jury secrecy, personal privacy protections under FOIA Exemption 7(C), attorney-client privilege and the need to safeguard investigative techniques and confidential sources.

“For clarity, the matter is a civil records-disclosure dispute under the United States Freedom of Information Act. It is not a criminal case against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, nor has the court found him guilty of any criminal wrongdoing,” Mr Onanuga stated. He added that the release or withholding of records under FOIA does not by itself establish criminal liability.

The current dispute sits against a longer history. A February 2003 letter from the American Consulate in Lagos to then Inspector-General of Police Tafa Balogun recorded that an FBI check had found no criminal arrest records, warrants or wanted notices relating to the then Lagos State Governor.

Supporters of greater transparency, including some civil society groups and opposition voices, continue to press for fuller release of the material, particularly as Nigeria approaches the 2027 elections. The Presidency has noted that neither Karl von Batten nor his client holds formal standing in the proceedings.

The plaintiff has until 11 September 2026 to file any opposition. The FBI, DEA and President Tinubu’s team then have until 18 September 2026 to respond. Judge Howell will determine whether the redactions applied to the Tinubu FBI files remain lawful.

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The outcome will settle a procedural question about access to decades-old government records rather than reopen settled criminal questions.