Explosive Revelation: US Firm Submitted Tinubu's Forfeiture Records to Trump
A Washington lobbying firm retained by Atiku Abubakar has detailed why it distributed documents concerning President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's decades-old U.S. civil forfeiture case to Trump administration officials and Congress. The firm stated its aim was to inform officials previously unaware of the historical allegations, emphasizing the significance due to drug trafficking's societal impact. The distributed records relate to a 1993 DOJ investigation into a suspected drug trafficking organization and associated bank accounts.
A Washington-based lobbying firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C., engaged by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has elaborated on its decision to submit documents pertaining to a decades-old United States civil forfeiture case involving President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. These documents were shared with officials in the Donald Trump administration, members of Congress, and congressional staff.
The firm, operating under a 12-month contract reportedly valued at $1.2 million with Atiku Abubakar, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, is tasked with advocacy, diplomatic engagement, and articulating Atiku’s stances on matters concerning Nigeria-United States relations. It clarified that the primary reason for distributing records from the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) was a perceived lack of awareness among many officials within the U.S. government regarding the historical allegations against Tinubu.
In a statement released on X (formerly Twitter), the firm confirmed holding discussions with various U.S. officials before disseminating over 60 pages of DOJ records and related court documents. "Many within the U.S. government were previously unaware of the DOJ’s allegations concerning Bola Tinubu. We are changing that," the firm declared. It underscored the gravity of the issue by citing the devastating impact of drug trafficking on American communities, noting its role in claiming thousands of lives and profoundly affecting countless families.
The firm also articulated its objective to ensure that then-President Donald Trump had comprehensive access to all records associated with the case. While only a chronology summarizing the DOJ’s allegations was made public at the time, the firm stated its full intention to bring the complete collection of DOJ court filings, supporting affidavits, and related federal court decisions to President Trump’s attention as swiftly as possible.
The documents provided by the firm include a chronology of the DOJ’s 1993 civil forfeiture case and subsequent Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation aimed at releasing records from the investigation. According to this chronology, the 1993 civil forfeiture action originated from a DOJ investigation into a suspected drug trafficking organization that operated between Nigeria and the United States from 1988 to 1991. The case, filed before the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and titled United States v. Funds in Account No. 263226700 et al., concerned funds that the government alleged were proceeds of narcotics trafficking or linked to money laundering activities. The records explicitly name Tinubu, Adegboyega Mueez Akande, and Abiodun Agbele as individuals implicated in the government’s allegations. Specifically, the chronology states that the DOJ alleged proceeds from the drug trafficking network were deposited into U.S. bank accounts associated with Tinubu during the specified period.