Nigeria's President Tinubu Asks US Court to Block Release of FBI and DEA Investigation Files
- Nigerian President Bola Tinubu filed a petition in a US court over investigative files tied to a historical narcotics inquiry that named him
- An American open-government campaigner sued multiple US agencies to obtain the FBI's complete master file on Tinubu, including 1993 interview notes
- Tinubu's legal team argued that releasing unredacted files would violate the Nigerian president's fundamental privacy protections under US law
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Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has moved to prevent a United States court from ordering the release of confidential government files connected to a historical narcotics trade investigation that bears his name.
Through his legal representatives, Tinubu filed a motion on 28 August 2026 urging the court to uphold earlier decisions by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to withhold or redact certain records sought under the US Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Source: UGC
Aaron Greenspan's FOIA lawsuit
According to a report by GhanaWeb, the court action stems from a legal challenge brought by Aaron Greenspan, an American open-government advocate, who filed applications against several US federal agencies seeking files related to investigations connected to the Nigerian president.
The materials Greenspan is pursuing include the FBI's full master file on President Tinubu, FBI Form 302 interview notes from 1992 and 1993, and documentation tied to a 1993 civil forfeiture action in the United States involving approximately $460,000.
President Tinubu has consistently maintained his innocence and denied any wrongdoing in relation to the matter.
Tinubu's legal team argues privacy rights
Tinubu's defence team, comprising attorneys Christopher W. Carmichael, Victor P. Henderson, and Oluwole O. Afolabi, submitted a 16-page application arguing that disclosing unredacted files would violate their client's fundamental privacy rights.
The lawyers contended that information previously made public during the 1993 forfeiture proceedings does not strip Tinubu of any privacy interest in confidential law enforcement dossiers held by US agencies.
"Regardless of the prior disclosure in the forfeiture proceeding, Intervenor retains a privacy interest in potential disclosure of the investigative files sought by Plaintiff," the application stated.
The defence further argued that Greenspan's FOIA request was narrowly driven by a desire to obtain any government document carrying Tinubu's name, rather than serving a legitimate broader public interest as required under US law.
"Plaintiff's filings, overwhelmingly, demonstrate that his singular focus is obtaining documents with Intervenor's 'name on them'," the filing read.
The legal team warned that permitting FOIA to be used in this manner would effectively allow it to circumvent statutory privacy protections designed to shield individuals from undue government disclosure.
"If this Court finds that Plaintiff cannot use FOIA to mine information in government files about a private individual, he should not be able to access documents with Intervenor's 'name on them'," the lawyers added.
The application concluded with a request for the presiding judge to deny Greenspan's motion for summary judgment and allow the FBI and DEA to maintain their existing redactions and withholdings.
"For all the foregoing reasons, Intervenor requests that the Court deny Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment and allow the redactions or withholdings made by the FBI and DEA to stand," the filing concluded.
FBI, DEA ordered to release Tinubu files
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that a US District Court had set August 21, 2026, as the deadline for federal agencies to hand over investigative records on President Bola Tinubu.
Judge Beryl Howell had issued the order after the FBI and DEA repeatedly missed court schedules in the three-year-old Freedom of Information case.
The lawsuit centred on a 1990s Chicago narcotics investigation during which Tinubu surrendered $460,000 to US authorities in a civil forfeiture proceeding.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
