WASHINGTON – President Bola Tinubu has joined the United States Department of Justice in seeking a 10-day extension to respond to a motion requesting the release of records linked to allegations of drug trafficking.
Tinubu’s legal team filed a notice of joinder before the US District Court for the District of Columbia, asking to remain on the same schedule as the defendants in the case.
The filing was published online by Von Batten-Montague-York, a US-based policy advisory and lobbying firm retained by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
In the notice, Tinubu’s lawyers said the president was joining the defendants’ request for additional time to respond to a motion for summary judgment.
“Intervenor joins Defendants’ motion for a 10-day extension of time to file response to the motion for summary judgment,” the filing stated.
The notice was signed by Christopher W. Carmichael and Victor P. Henderson of Henderson Parks, LLC.
The plaintiff opposed the request, according to the filing, while the defendant did not. However, US District Judge Beryl Howell subsequently denied the request for an extension.
Lobbying firm raises political concerns
Following the court’s decision, Von Batten-Montague-York accused Tinubu of attempting to use the additional time to exert political influence in Washington.
The firm alleged that Tinubu could use the delay to lobby US officials against releasing the records, potentially arguing that disclosure could affect US-Nigeria relations and security cooperation.
It also raised concerns about what it described as attempts by US government officials to interfere with the judicial or Freedom of Information Act process.
The case, Aaron Greenspan v. Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, et al., Civil Action No. 23-1816 (BAH), has been pending for more than three years.
What the records concern
The records sought in the litigation relate to US investigations and allegations concerning Tinubu and suspected drug-trafficking activities.
Previous reports have connected a $460,000 asset forfeiture involving Tinubu to a US federal investigation into a Chicago-based heroin-trafficking network dating back to the late 1980s and early 1990s.
In 1993, a US District Court ordered the forfeiture of $460,000 held in an account in Tinubu’s name to the US government. The order stated that the funds represented proceeds of narcotics trafficking or were involved in transactions violating money-laundering laws.
Tinubu has consistently denied wrongdoing and rejected allegations that he was involved in drug trafficking.
His lawyers have maintained that the forfeiture was a civil in rem proceeding against the money rather than a criminal prosecution against Tinubu.
They have also argued that the president was never arrested, indicted, arraigned or convicted of a drug offence in the United States.
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