Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has defended President Bola Tinubu’s opposition to the public release of his records held by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, arguing that the existence of FBI records bearing the President’s name does not necessarily mean he has a criminal record.
Omokri made the submission in a statement posted on his X handle on Monday, August 31, 2026, amid controversy over Tinubu’s efforts to prevent the release of unredacted records held by the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Omokri said Tinubu had no criminal record in the United States, Nigeria or elsewhere, and argued that FBI databases contain extensive records relating to individuals who may have undergone visa applications, background checks or other processes.
He said such records could contain sensitive personal information, including biometric, biographical and financial details, and questioned whether individuals would want such information released to political opponents.
Omokri also referred to correspondence he said was exchanged between the United States Embassy and Nigeria’s then Inspector-General of Police, Tafa Balogun, in February 2003.
According to him, Balogun had sought information from the embassy on whether the FBI had criminal records concerning Tinubu, who was then Governor of Lagos State, and received what he described as an “all clear” response.
Omokri said the correspondence was consistent with his own findings when he travelled to Chicago in 2022 to investigate Tinubu’s academic and other records.
He urged anyone questioning the authenticity of the document to seek clarification from the United States Embassy in Abuja or Lagos.
The comments came amid an ongoing legal battle in the United States over access to records relating to Tinubu.
PUNCH had reported that Tinubu asked the United States District Court for the District of Columbia to reject a request seeking the release of his unredacted FBI and DEA records.
The President’s lawyers argued that the US Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act protected the records from disclosure and maintained that the request was politically motivated.
The case followed a FOIA request by American transparency activist Aaron Greenspan, who sought records relating to Tinubu.
US authorities have invoked several FOIA exemptions in resisting disclosure of portions of the records, including exemptions relating to privacy, confidential sources, investigative techniques and the safety of individuals.
In a related 2025 ruling involving Greenspan’s FOIA litigation, the US Department of Justice reported that a court addressed requests for records concerning two individuals and considered FBI and DEA disclosure and privacy issues.
The controversy also relates to a 1993 US civil forfeiture proceeding in Illinois involving about $460,000 in an account linked to Tinubu. The funds were ordered forfeited after US authorities alleged they represented proceeds of narcotics trafficking or involved prohibited financial transactions.
The All Progressives Congress has maintained that the proceeding was a civil forfeiture case and did not amount to a criminal conviction.
The Presidential Election Petition Court, in September 2023, held that petitioners had failed to establish that Tinubu was arrested, arraigned, convicted or sentenced in a criminal case in the United States.
Meanwhile, opposition groups have continued to demand the release of the records.
The African Democratic Congress spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, said Tinubu should support their release if he had nothing to hide.
Similarly, the Nigeria Democratic Congress National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, said Nigerians deserved to know the truth and urged the President to allow the records to be released.
The ongoing US case concerns access to government records under FOIA and does not, by itself, constitute a criminal prosecution or establish that Tinubu committed a drug-trafficking offence.
