U.S. Court Orders Release of Confidential Records on Tinubu’s Alleged Drug Case

A U.S. federal judge has ruled that confidential documents linked to Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s alleged involvement in a 1990s drug trafficking and money laundering case must be released.

The decision, handed down by Judge Beryl Howell of the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., criticized the FBI and DEA for improperly withholding the records. The agencies had previously issued a “Glomar response”—a refusal to confirm or deny the existence of the documents—but the judge ruled this stance was “neither logical nor plausible.”

The lawsuit was filed by transparency advocate Aaron Greenspan under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), seeking access to records from the FBI, DEA, and IRS related to Tinubu’s alleged ties to a Chicago-based heroin trafficking operation in the early 1990s.

Court filings revealed that Tinubu was investigated for his suspected role in laundering money linked to drug sales. Notably, he reportedly forfeited $460,000 in 1993, believed to be proceeds from narcotics activity.

Judge Howell emphasized that in this case, the public’s right to know outweighs any privacy concerns. However, the CIA was not compelled to release documents, as there was no solid proof that it possessed any.

Following the ruling, the FBI and DEA must now end their Glomar responses and produce the requested documents. They are expected to submit a joint update to the court by May 2, 2025, outlining their compliance and addressing any outstanding matters.