A United States court has granted the FBI permission to submit documents linked to an ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case involving records relating to President Bola Tinubu for private judicial review.
The development was disclosed by Washington-based lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C. in a post on X. According to the firm, Judge Beryl Howell of the US District Court for the District of Columbia granted the FBI’s request on Friday, August 21, allowing the agency to submit the documents to the court for an in-camera review, meaning the judge will examine the materials privately.
The firm said the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and President Tinubu have until August 28, 2026, to submit any objections to the release of the records.
According to the firm, the FBI will now have to present reasons why the documents should not be made public, including through the confidential submission of sensitive materials for the judge’s review.
The lobbying firm further claimed that the FBI had acknowledged possessing sensitive information relating to allegations of drug trafficking involving Tinubu.
It also alleged that some of the records could contain information concerning criminal informants and argued that this would conflict with earlier descriptions of the matter as being related solely to civil forfeiture.
However, the firm noted that the court’s decision had not yet appeared on the official court docket as of Friday evening and that its report was based solely on its post on X.
The case remains ongoing, and the court has yet to make a final determination on whether the records in question will be released publicly.