“A US federal judge has ordered top American law enforcement agencies to release confidential records from a 1990s investigation involving Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, rejecting claims that secrecy remains justified.”
A US federal judge has ordered several American law enforcement agencies to release records tied to a 1990s investigation involving Nigerian President Bola Tinubu. Judge Beryl Howell of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that the FBI and DEA must lift their “Glomar responses,” which refused to confirm or deny the existence of such records.
“The claim that the Glomar responses were necessary to protect this information from public disclosure is at this point neither logical nor plausible,” the judge stated.
The case stems from a 2023 Freedom of Information Act lawsuit by US citizen Aaron Greenspan, who requested documents related to alleged drug trafficking and money laundering investigations involving Tinubu and associates.
Documents cited include a 1993 forfeiture complaint linking Tinubu to $460,000 in alleged narcotics proceeds.
The judge upheld the CIA’s refusal to confirm or deny its records. Agencies are now ordered to file a report by May 2 on outstanding issues regarding the FOIA request.
