Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally joined a request by the United States Department of Justice for a 10-day extension in a long-running Freedom of Information Act lawsuit that could lead to the release of law enforcement records linked to a decades-old narcotics investigation involving him. The development, disclosed on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, by Washington-based lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York, which is retained by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has intensified political scrutiny just days after Tinubu's 2027 re-election bid was confirmed by the All Progressives Congress. However, US District Judge Beryl A. Howell declined to grant the full 10-day extension and instead set August 21, 2026, as the new deadline for the government and Tinubu to respond.
The case, Aaron Greenspan v. Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, et al., was brought by American transparency activist Aaron Greenspan, who has sought records from US government agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration, relating to past investigations involving Tinubu. The records sought concern a federal narcotics investigation dating to the late 1980s and early 1990s, as well as a 1993 civil forfeiture of approximately $460,000 that Tinubu surrendered to US authorities. The forfeiture has for years been cited by Tinubu's political opponents in Nigeria as evidence of alleged links to narcotics trafficking.
Tinubu's legal team filed a notice of joinder before the US District Court for the District of Columbia, asking to be placed on the same schedule as the defendants in the case. In the notice, Tinubu's lawyers stated: "Intervenor joins Defendants' motion for a 10-day extension of time to file response to the motion for summary judgment (DE 92), inasmuch as Intervenor requests that the responses remain on the same schedule." The notice was signed by Christopher W. Carmichael and Victor P. Henderson of Henderson Parks, LLC.
US Attorney Jeanine Pirro, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, had reportedly requested the 10-day extension to comply with the court's directive concerning records held by the DOJ, FBI and DEA. However, Judge Howell, noting that the case had been pending for more than three years, granted only four additional days, setting August 21, 2026, as the deadline for compliance. The lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York welcomed the development and called for the records to be made public. "We deeply appreciate US Attorney Pirro and the DOJ's renewed motivation to release these documents, and we agree with Judge Howell. This case has been pending for three years. The time to release the Tinubu drug-trafficking files is now," the firm wrote.
The firm also argued that US strategic interests in Nigeria should not prevent the release of the records, stating: "As President Trump has indicated, our shared interests with Nigeria do not mean supporting an alleged drug trafficker." Tinubu has consistently denied wrongdoing and rejected allegations that he was involved in drug trafficking. His lawyers have maintained that the forfeiture proceeding was an in rem civil action against the money, rather than a criminal case against Tinubu, and that he was never arrested, indicted, arraigned or convicted of a drug offence in the United States.
The issue resurfaced during legal challenges to Tinubu's victory in Nigeria's 2023 presidential election, when Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party candidate Peter Obi argued, among other things, that the forfeiture should have affected Tinubu's eligibility to contest the election. Nigeria's Presidential Election Petition Court dismissed the challenges and affirmed Tinubu's election. Greenspan's FOIA litigation is separate from Nigeria's election cases; it seeks access to government records rather than a judicial determination of whether Tinubu committed a criminal offense. In April 2025, Judge Howell ordered the FBI and DEA to search for and process non-exempt records responsive to Greenspan's requests, rejecting the agencies' previous reliance on so-called Glomar responses, under which an agency neither confirms nor denies the existence of responsive records.
The ruling did not establish that Tinubu committed a drug-trafficking offense; rather, it concerned whether US agencies had complied with their FOIA obligations and whether records not legally exempt from disclosure should be processed and released. The agencies subsequently sought additional time to comply with the court's orders, leading to further proceedings before Howell. The latest development has acquired a political dimension in Nigeria, as Von Batten-Montague-York, which disclosed Tinubu's filing, has worked for Atiku and has campaigned for the release of the records. The firm said in July that it had provided documents concerning the historical case to officials in the Trump administration, members of Congress and congressional staff.
The renewed attention comes ahead of Nigeria's 2027 presidential election, in which Tinubu is seeking a second term. Tinubu's decision to join the Justice Department's request does not, by itself, establish that he is seeking to prevent the eventual release of records; the filing is part of the ongoing legal process concerning the timing and scope of disclosure. With Judge Howell declining to grant the requested 10-day extension in full, the US government and Tinubu's legal team face an August 21 deadline. The records, which have been the subject of a three-year legal battle, could be released within days, potentially reshaping the political landscape in Nigeria ahead of the 2027 elections.
📩 Stone Reporters News | 🌍 stonereportersnews.com
✉️ info@stonereportersnews.com | 📘 Facebook: Stone Reporters News | 🐦 X (Twitter): @StoneReportNew | 📸 Instagram: @stonereportersnews
Add comment
Comments