A federal court in the United States has mandated that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) submit a timeline by July 31, 2025, for the release of unredacted documents linked to Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s alleged involvement in a past heroin trafficking investigation.
According to West Africa Weekly, a directive was issued on April 8, 2025, by Judge Beryl A. Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, following Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits filed by Aaron Greenspan, founder of the legal transparency platform PlainSite, and David Hundeyin, Editor-in-Chief of West Africa Weekly.
Judge Howell ordered the FBI and DEA to locate and release all non-exempt, unredacted records connected to Tinubu’s alleged heroin trafficking activities in Chicago—rejecting prior arguments that such disclosures would violate privacy protections.
In a joint status report filed on May 1, Greenspan opposed the agencies’ request for an additional 90 days to produce the documents. He insisted that files already identified should be released within a week and the remaining production completed in no more than two weeks. Greenspan also notified the court of his intent to recover $440.22 in legal expenses.
Despite their resistance, both the FBI and DEA confirmed that search efforts were underway, but proposed a July 31 deadline to outline a release schedule. The plaintiffs countered, demanding a shorter timeline with a proposed deadline of May 31. Greenspan criticized the delay, stating that the agencies had provided “no rationale whatsoever” for their proposed three-month extension.
Providing clarity on the issue, Hundeyin posted on X (formerly Twitter) on May 2, revealing that a middle ground had been reached.
“While they initially requested a further 90 days to identify and produce the unredacted files, we pushed back on that and demanded this to be done within 7 days. The final position agreed by both parties is that the FBI and DEA are to respond with a schedule for releasing the unredacted pages by July 31,” he stated.
The legal case, titled Greenspan v. Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys et al., Civil Action No. 23-1816 (BAH), was initiated in 2023 after six U.S. government agencies—including the FBI, DEA, IRS, CIA, State Department, and Department of Justice—declined to fully release documents related to Tinubu.
While most agencies cited privacy exemptions, Judge Howell dismissed those claims as “neither logical nor plausible,” and ordered the full release of all non-exempt materials. The CIA, however, was exempted from the order.
Between October 2023 and March 2024, the FBI released more than 3,000 pages of documents in five heavily redacted batches. None of the disclosed pages contained Tinubu’s name. In a previous filing, the DEA controversially argued that Tinubu’s right to privacy outweighed the Nigerian public’s interest in transparency—a position that drew sharp criticism.
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As of now, the plaintiffs remain resolute in their mission to ensure full disclosure. Hundeyin emphasized that a key takeaway is that the agencies will not be appealing the court’s decision—a sentiment echoed by Greenspan during a recent episode of PlainSite Office Hours.
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“The really significant news here is that the response from the FBI and DEA has ruled out the possibility of an appeal,” Hundeyin said. “They are complying with the order and will respond with a timetable for releasing the unredacted files by July 31.”
