A United States federal judge has rejected the request to make public the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) records related to Bola Tinubu
The case, filed by Nigerian lawyer Johnmary C. Jideobi in September 2021, aimed to access Mr. Tinubu’s alleged records of criminal forfeiture and money laundering through the U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Background
In this lawsuit, Mr. Jideobi sought the court’s intervention to force the CIA and FBI to disclose all records and documents pertaining to Tinubu.
However, the Judge deemed the request “impermissibly speculative” .
Both agencies raised objections, arguing that Mr. Jideobi did not provide concrete evidence confirming the existence of these records.
They further contended that conducting a search for these files would place an “unduly burdensome” workload on the agencies.
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Court’s Decision
Judge John D. Bates upheld the objections of the CIA and FBI, emphasizing Mr. Jideobi’s failure to provide substantial evidence that the agencies possess undisclosed records connected to Tinubu.
Furthermore, the judge dismissed the argument that releasing these records would serve the U.S. public interest.
He held that the plaintiff failed to establish any public interest tied to the release of documents concerning the APC presidential candidate, assuming such documents exist.
With this case’s dismissal, the CIA and FBI are not obligated to release or search for any records in their possession regarding Mr. Tinubu’s past activities, as initially requested by Mr. Jideobi through the lawsuit.
This ruling however, marks the conclusion of efforts to determine whether U.S. agencies possess intelligence documents about Mr. Tinubu that could impact Nigeria’s 2023 elections.