President Bola Tinubu is fighting the release of some of his U.S. law-enforcement records, with the Presidency insisting that the dispute is about access to government documents, not a criminal trial.
The clarification came amid fresh controversy over a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case in a Washington, D.C., federal court involving records held by the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
The case was filed by American transparency activist Aaron Greenspan, who sought records relating to Tinubu and an alleged drug-trafficking investigation dating back to the early 1990s.
According to the Presidency, the FBI and DEA have already released 399 pages, but parts were blacked out under exemptions in U.S. law covering privacy, confidential sources, investigative methods and other protected information.
Tinubu has also invoked privacy protections under the FOIA, arguing against the disclosure of some of the records.
The Presidency said the government agencies’ refusal to release certain portions does not mean Tinubu has been found guilty of any crime.
However, the controversy intensified after a recent FBI court filing stated that the records were compiled as part of an investigation involving multiple people and drug-trafficking crimes. The court has not found Tinubu guilty of drug trafficking, nor does the FOIA case amount to a criminal prosecution against him.
The dispute dates back to 2022 and became a federal court case in 2023. In April 2025, Judge Beryl Howell ordered the FBI and DEA to search for and process non-exempt records after rejecting their earlier refusal to even confirm or deny the existence of relevant files.
The Presidency has also dismissed claims by Washington lobbyist Karl Von Batten and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, stressing that neither is a party to the FOIA litigation.
It maintained that the immediate battle is over what information U.S. agencies can legally withhold or release, rather than a criminal case against Tinubu.
Don’t Miss Out! Join our WhatsApp Channel for instant news updates. Click here to join
