A United States lobbying firm hired by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar says it has begun distributing documents linked to a decades old forfeiture case involving President Bola Tinubu to officials in the Donald Trump administration and the Congress.
The Washington based firm, Von Batten Montague York, disclosed that it had shared more than 60 pages of documents from the US Department of Justice and related court records after holding discussions with government officials and congressional staff.
According to the firm, the documents relate to a 1993 civil forfeiture case arising from a US investigation into an alleged drug trafficking network operating between Nigeria and the United States. The records referenced accounts allegedly linked to Tinubu and other individuals, including Adegboyega Mueez Akande and Abiodun Agbele.
The lobbying company said some of the officials it contacted were not previously familiar with the historical case. It added that the materials were being circulated for informational and oversight purposes because of Nigeria’s strategic relationship with the United States.
The documents also highlighted a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed in 2023 by journalist Aaron Greenspan seeking access to records connected to the investigation. Court proceedings arising from that request remain ongoing.
The forfeiture case was a major issue during legal challenges to the outcome of Nigeria’s 2023 presidential election.
However, the Presidential Election Petition Court ruled that the forfeiture proceedings were civil rather than criminal and held that there was no evidence that Tinubu had been convicted of any offence in the United States.
The court subsequently dismissed arguments that the matter affected his eligibility to contest the election.
