The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has warned a United States federal court that releasing certain documents regarding Nigerian President Bola Tinubu could severely endanger human life and physical safety.
The disclosure was detailed in an urgent court motion filed on August 20, 2026, before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in the high-profile Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit Aaron Greenspan v. Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys et al. ​In the submission before Presiding Judge Beryl A.
Howell, federal attorneys requested permission to file declarations ex parte and in camera—allowing the agency to privately brief the judge behind closed doors without disclosing sensitive details to the public or the plaintiff. ​The legal standoff centers on extensive FOIA requests submitted by American transparency advocate Aaron Greenspan, who is seeking the complete federal dossier on President Tinubu.
The records include Form 302 interview files from a 1990s federal investigation (Case No. 245-IP-71386-UUUUUU) linked to historic civil forfeiture proceedings in Illinois. ​While the FBI previously invoked privacy and law enforcement exemptions to withhold the material, its latest filing asserts additional protections under FOIA Exemptions 7(E) and 7(F). The bureau argued that publicly stating the full rationale for withholding the records would breach the very secrecy required to protect sensitive law enforcement methods and human safety.
​”Disclosure of some information could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of any individual,” the FBI noted in its motion, adding that full context cannot be provided on the public docket without compromising security. ​The motion revealed that Greenspan formally opposed the sealed submission following a conference between the parties on August 19, 2026.
Meanwhile, foreign policy lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York, which monitored the filing, noted that the safety risks highlight the extreme sensitivity surrounding the historical records. ​Subject to court approval, the FBI stated it will submit its secret evidentiary declarations directly to Judge Howell by August 28, 2026, for a private determination on whether the documents must remain classified.
