Why FBI, DEA Won’t Release Tinubu’s Records – Lawyer

A member of President Bola Tinubu’s legal team in the United States, Wole Afolabi (SAN), has dismissed claims that they are trying to shield the president from damaging information.

Afolabi said the legal team’s position was based on provisions of United States law.

Naija News reports that the lawyer spoke during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, amid a legal battle over the release of records linked to allegations of drug trafficking involving Tinubu.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria explained that the US government has already released documents relating to the matter but is resisting the disclosure of information it considers exempt under the Freedom of Information Act.

He said the FBI and DEA had raised concerns that releasing some of the information could compromise their agents, confidential sources and investigative methods.

Afolabi said Tinubu’s lawyers would be failing in their professional duties if they did not rely on the protections available under US law.

“It will amount to professional malpractice on our part if we don’t take advantage of what the law offers.”

He also rejected suggestions that the government’s decision to withhold portions of the records was intended to protect Tinubu personally.

According to him, the US government’s filings focused on protecting agents, sources and investigative techniques rather than shielding the Nigerian president.

“They are saying that if we discuss this publicly, we would compromise our agents; we would compromise the techniques that we use to get information,” Afolabi said.

He added that the agencies were also concerned about exposing informants.

“They have sources, they have informants. They don’t want them to be compromised,” he said.

Addressing allegations that Tinubu was involved in drug trafficking, Afolabi argued that no such evidence exists.

He insisted that if US authorities had sufficient evidence to prosecute Tinubu for drug trafficking, he would have been indicted.

“If he was culpable, he simply would have been indicted. There’s no shortcut around it,” he said.

Afolabi also stressed that being investigated by law enforcement did not necessarily mean that a person had committed an offence.

“Anyone can be a subject of investigation. That’s just how it goes,” he said, adding that the presumption of innocence remained applicable.

The lawyer was, however, unwilling to disclose details of Tinubu’s explanation of the $460,000 forfeited to the US government in the 1990s.

He cited attorney-client privilege, saying he could not reveal confidential information the president had provided to him.

“Unfortunately, I can’t divulge any information that my client had disclosed to me confidentially,” Afolabi said.