Special to USAfrica magazine (Houston) and USAfricaonline.com, the first African-owned US-based professional newspaper published on the Internet.
A sworn declaration filed by the FBI in a US federal court has reaffirmed that Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was a subject of a criminal investigation involving the agency and the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in the early 1990s.
The declaration, filed Aug. 28 before the US District Court for the District of Columbia, forms part of an ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit seeking access to US law enforcement records relating to Tinubu.
The FBI said the records sought in the case were “compiled in furtherance” of its investigation of multiple individuals for drug-trafficking crimes, according to excerpts of the declaration published by Washington-based lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York.
The firm, which has been retained by former Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar, said it obtained a large volume of records from the FBI and was reviewing and redacting some of the material before publication.
The latest filing follows an April 2025 ruling by US District Judge Beryl Howell, who found that public filings by the US Justice Department had already officially acknowledged that Tinubu was one subject of a criminal investigation involving, among other agencies, the FBI and DEA.
The judge consequently ordered the FBI and DEA to search for and process non-exempt records sought under FOIA.
The case was brought by Aaron Greenspan, who requested FBI records relating to Tinubu, including his entire FBI file and interview records from 1992 and 1993.
The records relate to a broader investigation into a Chicago-based heroin trafficking and money-laundering operation in the early 1990s.
The court’s 2025 ruling, however, did not find that Tinubu committed a drug-trafficking offense, nor did it amount to a criminal charge or conviction against him.
The FBI has continued to withhold or redact portions of the records, citing exemptions under U.S. freedom-of-information law covering personal privacy, confidential sources, law enforcement methods and information that could endanger individuals.
Tinubu’s legal team has also challenged further disclosure of records in the case, according to recent court filings.
The renewed disclosure comes as Nigeria’s political parties prepare for the 2027 presidential election, with Atiku (Peter Obi) among opposition politicians seeking to challenge Tinubu’s administration. (Ref: Anadolu)
