The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has warned that releasing some records linked to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu could expose its agents, informants and other individuals to retaliation or threats to their lives.
The warning was contained in a court filing in an ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit before Judge Beryl A. Howell of the US District Court for the District of Columbia.
FBI Raises Safety Concerns
The case was initiated after American transparency activist Aaron Greenspan requested records concerning historical US investigations involving Tinubu.
Greenspan’s requests cover records held by several federal agencies, including the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and immigration authorities.
The FBI argued that releasing certain identifying information could expose people who participated in or assisted investigations to retaliation from individuals connected to the criminal activities examined in the records.
Agency Cites FOIA Exemption
The bureau relied partly on FOIA Exemption 7(F), which protects information whose disclosure could reasonably be expected to endanger an individual’s life or physical safety.
According to the filing, revealing names or other identifying details of people mentioned in the investigative records could expose them to violent retaliation.
The FBI also cited privacy protections, arguing that some individuals named in the records could face harm to their reputation or personal safety if information described as derogatory or incriminating were made public.
Tinubu Records at Centre of Case
The FOIA dispute concerns records from historical investigations involving Tinubu in the United States during the 1980s and 1990s.
The case has also drawn attention because of a 1993 civil forfeiture proceeding in which about $460,000 associated with an account linked to Tinubu was forfeited to the US government. Tinubu has denied wrongdoing and was not criminally charged or convicted in connection with the forfeiture case.
The FBI and other agencies have faced pressure over their handling of Greenspan’s requests and the extent to which the records should be disclosed.
Judge Orders Further Explanation
Judge Howell previously rejected the FBI and DEA’s use of broad “Glomar” responses in the case, requiring the agencies to search for and process records that are not protected from disclosure.
The court subsequently allowed the FBI to submit confidential explanations and records privately for judicial review as it defended the withholding of some material.
The latest filing forms part of that process as the court considers whether the disputed records should remain withheld under FOIA exemptions or whether portions can be released.
The court has yet to order the full public release of the contested records, leaving the FBI’s claims about potential risks to agents, informants and other individuals subject to judicial consideration.
