The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has confirmed in a sworn court declaration that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was investigated in connection with drug-related crimes in the early 1990s, while making clear the confirmation does not amount to a finding of guilt.
FBI's sworn declaration and its scope
The declaration, filed on August 28, 2026, before the US District Court for the District of Columbia, stated that records being sought in the case were "compiled in furtherance of the FBI's investigation of multiple individuals for drug-related crimes." The agency also acknowledged that a court had previously made an official finding that an investigation involving Tinubu existed.
The confirmation emerged through an ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case brought by Aaron Greenspan, an American transparency activist. Greenspan had requested the "entire FBI file for Bola Ahmed Tinubu" and FBI Form 302 interview documents from Case No. 245-IP-71386-UUUUUU, covering the period between 1992 and 1993. Those requests are tied to a broader effort to access files on a Chicago-based drug operation that US authorities investigated during that period.
Background: How the FOIA case began
The case gained fresh momentum after a ruling in April 2025 by US District Judge Beryl Howell, who found that the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration could no longer deploy so-called "Glomar" responses to avoid confirming or denying the existence of relevant records. Judge Howell directed both agencies to process records not covered by exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act.
Despite this, the FBI has continued to withhold portions of the documents, citing grounds that include personal privacy, confidential sources, law-enforcement techniques, and the safety of individuals named in the files, according to The Tribune.
Presidency accuses Atiku of political manipulation
The disclosure was amplified by Von Batten-Montague-York, a Washington-based lobbying firm that said it was reviewing records obtained from the FBI. The firm stated on its X account that the FBI declaration contradicted prior claims that Tinubu had never been investigated.
The Presidency responded sharply. Special Adviser Sunday Dare accused former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar of hiring the firm to stir controversy before the 2027 presidential election. Dare said US Department of Justice Foreign Agents Registration Act filings showed that Atiku contracted the firm on a $1.2 million, 12-month retainer, with the aim of deploying historical US court records as political leverage.
Dare described the situation as "a clinical demonstration of desperation" and cautioned against treating statements from a lobbying firm as the position of the US government. He also cited Tinubu's lawyer, Wole Afolabi, SAN, who argued on Channels Television that if the President had been criminally liable under US law, American authorities would have charged and prosecuted him at the time.
The FBI's declaration confirms that Tinubu featured in a drug-related investigation during the early 1990s. The publicly available court material does not, on its own, establish that he committed or was convicted of any offence.
