The Nigerian presidency has downplayed a recent U.S. court ruling ordering the FBI and DEA to release records from investigations linked to President Bola Tinubu in the 1990s.
Presidential adviser Bayo Onanuga said the reports “contain nothing new” and have been public for over 30 years. He added the documents do not indict Tinubu, though lawyers are reviewing the court’s decision.
U.S. Judge Beryl Howell ruled that withholding the records was “neither logical nor plausible,” rejecting the agencies’ “Glomar” responses, which refused to confirm or deny the records’ existence. The FBI and DEA have been ordered to release the unredacted files and report by May 2.
The ruling stems from a 2023 FOIA lawsuit filed by U.S. citizen Aaron Greenspan, seeking documents on Tinubu and others linked to a heroin trafficking case. A 1993 affidavit from IRS agent Kevin Moss cited probable cause that Tinubu’s bank accounts were tied to drug proceeds. Tinubu forfeited the funds but has consistently denied any wrongdoing and was never charged.
