FBI investigated people linked to Tinubu, not President — Omokri

Nigeria’s Ambassador-designate to Mexico, Reno Omokri, has acknowledged that the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted an investigation involving individuals connected to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, but insisted that the Nigerian leader was not the subject of the probe.

Omokri made the clarification during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, amid renewed controversy over FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) records being sought in a United States court in connection with Tinubu’s past dealings and a 1990s investigation.

He said reports suggesting that the President himself was investigated by the FBI were misleading, arguing that the records being discussed relate to people whose financial activities came under scrutiny.

“There was an investigation. Bola Ahmed Tinubu was not the subject of that investigation,” Omokri said, adding that the President was working as an accountant at the time and had money belonging to clients who were subsequently investigated.

According to him, the funds became part of the investigation because of their connection to the individuals under scrutiny. He said that when the matter was brought to Tinubu’s attention, the then accountant agreed to the forfeiture of the funds.

Omokri stressed that the forfeiture related to the accounts and not to the President personally.

The controversy has intensified following a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case filed in the United States by transparency activist Aaron Greenspan, who has sought access to records held by US agencies concerning Tinubu.

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The case, filed as Civil Action No. 23-1816 before the US District Court for the District of Columbia, followed FOIA requests submitted in 2022 to several American government agencies.

The FBI and DEA remain involved in the litigation after other agencies were removed from the case following rulings that allowed them, in certain circumstances, to neither confirm nor deny the existence of requested records.

The Presidency has repeatedly maintained that the proceedings are a civil records-disclosure dispute, not a criminal prosecution of Tinubu. It has also stressed that no US court has found the President guilty of criminal wrongdoing.

According to the Presidency, the FBI and DEA have produced hundreds of pages of records in the litigation, with portions withheld or redacted under exemptions provided by US law. The exemptions include protections for grand-jury information, law-enforcement investigations, confidential sources, investigative techniques, attorney-client privilege and personal privacy.

Tinubu was also permitted to participate in the case as an intervenor to protect his privacy interests in the records being sought by Greenspan.

The latest controversy followed the submission of FBI records to US District Judge Beryl Howell on August 28 for review under seal. The materials were submitted ex parte and in camera, meaning they were provided to the judge for private judicial review rather than released publicly.

Omokri, however, argued that the existence of FBI records bearing Tinubu’s name should not automatically be interpreted as evidence of a criminal investigation against him.

He referred to a 2003 FBI records check, which he said showed that there was no criminal arrest record, outstanding warrant or similar criminal record against Tinubu at the time.

The ambassador-designate also rejected the characterisation of the documents as evidence that Tinubu had a criminal record in the United States.

He said FBI records can contain information about individuals for several reasons and that the mere existence of a file or reference to a person’s name does not, by itself, establish criminal culpability.

Omokri also questioned the wisdom of releasing all the records publicly, arguing that some of the material could contain sensitive personal information.

The Presidency had earlier explained that Tinubu himself invoked privacy protections under the FOIA process, while insisting that his participation in the case should not be interpreted as an indication that he was facing criminal charges in the United States.

The dispute has nevertheless continued to generate political controversy in Nigeria, particularly as parties and political groups position themselves ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Opposition figures and critics of the administration have repeatedly demanded greater transparency over the records, while supporters of Tinubu have argued that the US court proceedings should not be presented as evidence of criminal wrongdoing.

With the legal dispute still before the US District Court for the District of Columbia, the contents of the records submitted under seal have not been fully made public. The court will ultimately determine what, if any, additional material can be disclosed under US law.

For now, Omokri’s position is that while an FBI investigation involving people connected to Tinubu took place, there is a crucial distinction between that investigation and an allegation that the President himself was the target of a criminal probe.

The ambassador-designate said that distinction was being lost in the political debate surrounding the records.

FBI investigated people linked to Tinubu, not President — Omokri

NDLEA Intercepts 44kg UK-Linked Cannabis, Drugs Hidden in Bread, Speakers

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have intercepted two consignments of synthetic cannabis, popularly known as Colorado or “Colos,” shipped from the United Kingdom, while recovering more than 2.3 tonnes of assorted illicit drugs in coordinated operations across eight states.

The latest operations also uncovered consignments of illicit drugs concealed in music speakers and loaves of bread, highlighting the increasingly sophisticated methods allegedly being used by drug trafficking networks to move controlled substances within and outside Nigeria.

The NDLEA said its operatives at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos, intercepted a UK-bound consignment containing 27 parcels of Colorado weighing 32.20kg.

A real estate agent, Abideen Jide Salami, was arrested on September 9 after allegedly arriving to collect a large luggage containing the illicit substance. According to the agency, Salami used a secret collection code reportedly sent to him by his brother based in the United Kingdom.

A follow-up operation linked to another UK consignment led to the arrest of 44-year-old Nurudeen Abiodun Kadiri, the designated recipient of another 12.25kg of Colorado. The suspect reportedly told investigators that his brother in the UK sent him the consignment.

The two UK-linked seizures amounted to 44.45kg of synthetic cannabis.

The NDLEA‘s Directorate of Operations and General Investigation also intercepted another consignment of Colorado concealed inside a music speaker at a motor park in Maza-Maza, Lagos.

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The agency said the speaker contained three packs of the illicit substance and was allegedly being transported to Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, with Liberia as the eventual destination.

A sting operation at a nearby eatery resulted in the arrest of 41-year-old tour agent Ifeanyi Obed Augustine and 46-year-old Obasi Ugochukwu, identified by the agency as the alleged owner of the consignment.

In another operation at Iddo Park, Lagos, NDLEA operatives arrested Ifeanyi Nwokolo Henry on September 11 while he was allegedly attempting to dispatch 2.1kg of Colorado to Kano.

The nationwide crackdown extended beyond cannabis and synthetic drugs to pharmaceutical substances, including pregabalin, tramadol, diazepam, pentazocine, codeine and flunitrazepam.

In Kano State, NDLEA operatives raiding the Sabon Gari area arrested 20-year-old Saidu Adamu with 785,000 capsules of pregabalin weighing 669.425kg.

In a separate stop-and-search operation along the Zaria-Kano-Hadejia Road, officers recovered 1,700 tablets of diazepam allegedly concealed inside loaves of bread. A 28-year-old suspect, Habibu Sabitu, was arrested.

In Plateau State, operatives arrested 51-year-old Chinedu Uzor at Katako Market in Jos with 157,100 capsules of tramadol.

In Delta State, separate operations in Ughelli and Asaba resulted in the seizure of pentazocine injections, codeine syrup, tramadol, diazepam, flunitrazepam, also known as Hypnox, and MDMA, popularly known as Molly.

The agency said some of the substances were concealed inside music speakers. Two suspects, Emeka Oji and Chukwuebuka Anedi, were arrested in connection with the seizures.

The NDLEA also intensified its campaign against cannabis cultivation and distribution.

In Edo State, operatives destroyed 4,832.56kg of skunk, a form of cannabis, during raids on cannabis farms in Usen Forest, Igwe-Oke Forest and Ogboha Forest, covering parts of Ovia South-West, Owan East and Owan West Local Government Areas.

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A 39-year-old suspect, Sunday Segun, was arrested during the operation on September 11.

In Ondo State, intelligence-led operatives raided a residence along Oke-Iya, Ijoka Road, Akure, where they recovered 186kg of skunk allegedly concealed in the boot of a Toyota Avalon car.

The agency arrested 58-year-old Paul Ogbuwala, who was allegedly preparing to move the consignment to Jos for onward distribution.

In Kaduna State, NDLEA operatives arrested Hannah Michael at Gonin Gora with 369.6kg of cannabis.

Another major seizure was recorded in Bayelsa State, where four suspects were arrested at Ovom, Yenagoa, with 110 bags of cannabis weighing 876kg.

Those arrested were identified as 70-year-old Godwoman Gboriye, Motombo Silver, 44, Pere Andrew, 39, and Keme Andrew, 43.

The NDLEA said the latest operations were carried out across Lagos, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Kaduna, Plateau, Bayelsa and Kano states, resulting in the recovery of more than 2.3 tonnes of assorted illicit drugs and the arrest of several suspects.

The interceptions underline the wide range of channels allegedly being exploited by drug trafficking networks, including international consolidated cargoes, motor parks, road transportation and concealed compartments in everyday items.

The use of ordinary products such as bread and music speakers to conceal controlled substances also demonstrates the challenges faced by law enforcement authorities in identifying illicit consignments before they reach their destinations.

NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), commended the officers involved in the operations and urged them to maintain pressure on drug trafficking networks across the country.

Marwa charged the agency’s personnel to continue shutting down trafficking routes through airports, seaports, land borders and cannabis-producing areas in the hinterland.

The NDLEA has also continued its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) campaign, combining enforcement operations with public awareness, prevention and community-based sensitisation.

The latest seizures come as the agency continues its efforts to disrupt both domestic and international drug supply chains and prevent controlled substances from reaching Nigerian communities and foreign destinations.

For the suspects arrested in the various operations, the allegations remain subject to investigation and prosecution in accordance with Nigerian law.

NDLEA Intercepts 44kg UK-Linked Cannabis, Drugs Hidden in Bread, Speakers

Igbo Ministers Link UK Separatist Crisis to Kanu’s Conviction, Demand His Release

A group of Concerned Igbo Ministers has linked renewed separatist agitation involving Nigerians in the United Kingdom to the conviction and continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and called on the Federal Government to release him.

The group argued that Kanu’s continued imprisonment has not resolved the grievances driving support for the Biafra separatist movement, insisting that a political and peaceful approach is needed to address the wider crisis.

The ministers said the Federal Government should consider dialogue, reconciliation and political engagement alongside security and judicial measures in dealing with separatist sentiments in the South-East and among some Nigerians abroad.

Their position comes amid renewed attention to activities by pro-Biafra groups in the United Kingdom, where supporters of Kanu have continued to campaign for his release and raise concerns over his conviction and treatment in detention.

The group reportedly maintained that the issues surrounding Kanu should not be viewed solely as a criminal matter, arguing that his case has become closely associated with broader grievances over governance, political representation and perceived marginalisation.

Kanu, a British-Nigerian separatist leader, has remained at the centre of Nigeria’s South-East separatist crisis for more than a decade.

He was arrested in Kenya in 2021 and subsequently returned to Nigeria, where he faced terrorism-related charges arising from his activities and broadcasts linked to the separatist campaign.

A Federal High Court in Abuja later convicted Kanu on terrorism-related charges and handed him multiple life sentences. He has challenged the conviction through the judicial process.

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The conviction has continued to generate controversy, with Kanu’s supporters and some community leaders arguing that the case should be resolved through political intervention.

The Nigerian government, however, has maintained that Kanu must answer to the charges against him and that his case is subject to the country’s judicial process.

The Concerned Igbo Ministers said the continued incarceration of the IPOB leader could make it more difficult to achieve lasting peace in the region.

They urged the authorities to examine the root causes of the separatist agitation and pursue measures capable of restoring confidence among communities affected by the prolonged crisis.

The group’s intervention adds to previous calls by some Igbo religious, political and community leaders for Kanu’s release and a broader political solution to the separatist conflict.

The debate over Kanu’s fate has also extended beyond Nigeria because of his British citizenship and the involvement of his family and supporters in legal and political campaigns in the UK.

British authorities have previously faced questions over Kanu’s detention in Nigeria, particularly following his controversial transfer from Kenya.

Kanu’s family had also pursued legal action in the United Kingdom over the circumstances surrounding his return to Nigeria, although British courts have previously rejected aspects of the challenge.

The controversy has remained closely connected to the wider activities of IPOB, which campaigns for an independent Biafra.

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The Nigerian government has proscribed IPOB and accused the group and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network, of involvement in violence and attacks in the South-East.

IPOB has repeatedly rejected some of the allegations attributed to it and maintained that its campaign is focused on achieving self-determination for the people of the former Eastern Region.

The wider separatist conflict has nevertheless had significant consequences for residents and businesses in the South-East, including disruptions caused by sit-at-home orders, insecurity and attacks on public infrastructure.

Security agencies have continued operations against armed groups in the region, while political and community leaders have repeatedly called for approaches that combine security measures with dialogue and economic development.

The ministers’ latest demand comes against this background, with the group arguing that Kanu’s case should be considered as part of the broader search for peace and stability.

Supporters of Kanu have long maintained that his release could help reduce tensions and create an opportunity for dialogue between the Federal Government and representatives of communities advocating greater autonomy or self-determination.

Critics of such calls, however, argue that Kanu’s conviction followed a judicial process and that any decision concerning his sentence must respect the independence of the courts.

The demand for his release therefore remains politically sensitive, particularly as the Federal Government continues to address security challenges across the South-East.

For now, Nnamdi Kanu remains in custody, while his legal challenge continues.

The latest intervention by the Concerned Igbo Ministers has further intensified the debate over whether the government should pursue a judicial, political or negotiated approach to the Kanu case and the wider Biafra separatist agitation.

The Federal Government has yet to announce any decision to accept the ministers’ demand for Kanu’s release.

Igbo Ministers Link UK Separatist Crisis to Kanu’s Conviction, Demand His Release