The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has asked a federal court in Washington, D.C., for permission to keep portions of records linked to an old investigation involving President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from public disclosure.
In a motion filed on August 20, the FBI asked the US District Court for the District of Columbia to allow it to provide additional justification for withholding the records privately and directly to the judge.
The agency wants to submit the explanation ex parte and in camera, meaning the information would be presented to the judge confidentially and outside the public court record.
The FBI argued that publicly explaining its reasons for withholding the records could itself reveal the sensitive information it is seeking to protect.
According to the agency, some of the material could expose investigative procedures and law-enforcement techniques, while other information could potentially put individuals at risk of physical harm.
The development was publicised on X by Von Batten-Montague-York, a Washington-based lobbying firm recently retained by African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar.
The case stems from two Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests seeking FBI records connected to Tinubu. One request sought the bureau’s complete file on the Nigerian president, while another sought interview reports, known as Form 302s, relating to an FBI investigation from 1992 and 1993.
The FBI said it relied on several exemptions under the FOIA law to withhold portions of the records. The exemptions cover areas including personal privacy, confidential sources, law-enforcement techniques and information that could endanger individuals.
The agency told the court that its public filings could not fully explain its reliance on FOIA exemptions 7(E) and 7(F) without potentially disclosing the very information those exemptions are designed to protect.
It therefore asked to supplement its public submission with a sealed declaration containing its fuller justification, which would allow the judge to review the sensitive information privately.
If the court grants the request, the FBI said it plans to submit the confidential declaration by August 28.
The lawsuit was filed by Aaron Greenspan, founder of PlainSite, who has pursued government records relating to a Chicago-based heroin trafficking investigation dating back to the early 1990s.
Between 2022 and 2023, Greenspan submitted 12 FOIA requests to six federal agencies seeking records concerning four individuals, including Tinubu, Lee Andrew Edwards, Mueez Abegboyega Akande and Abiodun Agbele.
Several agencies initially declined to confirm whether responsive records existed, a position commonly known under US law as a “Glomar response.” Greenspan challenged the decisions and later sued after the Justice Department’s Office of Information Policy upheld the agencies’ positions.
In April 2025, US District Judge Beryl Howell ruled against the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration’s continued use of the Glomar response.
Howell found that the agencies had failed to establish a sufficient legal basis for concealing whether records concerning Tinubu existed.
The latest FBI filing comes amid the continuing legal dispute over the release of the records.
The Justice Department had requested a 10-day extension to respond to a court order, but Howell granted only four additional days, setting August 21 as the revised deadline.
Tinubu’s lawyers subsequently joined the Justice Department’s request for additional time, but the judge reportedly rejected the longer extension.
The FBI is now seeking to provide the court with a fuller, confidential explanation for withholding parts of the records, particularly information it says could reveal sensitive investigative techniques or expose individuals to potential danger.
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