Omokri admits FBI probe, insists Tinubu was not target

Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to Mexico, Reno Omokri, has acknowledged that an FBI investigation involving individuals connected to President Bola Tinubu took place, but insisted that the President was not the subject of the investigation.

Omokri made the clarification while appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Sunday, amid renewed controversy over United States law-enforcement records linked to Tinubu and efforts to obtain additional documents.

“There was an investigation. Bola Ahmed Tinubu was not the subject of that investigation,” Omokri said.

According to him, Tinubu was working as an accountant at the time and held funds belonging to clients who were themselves under investigation by American authorities.

He said the funds were subsequently forfeited after being identified as suspicious.

“The President was an accountant, and then the President had client funds. Those persons had been indicted by the FBI, and as a result of that, it said that certain funds… are suspicious funds,” he said.

“And then when it was brought to the attention of the President, the President agreed for a forfeiture. Now, it was to the accounts, not the President.”

Omokri also referred to a 2003 FBI document which he said contained the outcome of checks conducted on Tinubu.

He claimed the document showed that there was no criminal arrest record or outstanding warrant against the President.

However, he maintained that the existence of an FBI investigation involving people connected to Tinubu should not be confused with an investigation of the President himself.

“There was an investigation. Bola Ahmed Tinubu was not the subject of that investigation,” he reiterated.

The ambassador-designate declined to identify the people who were investigated, saying he did not want to expose their families to unnecessary consequences.

He also declined to discuss the details of the records involved in the ongoing controversy, citing a pending court case.

The dispute centres on US law-enforcement records sought through Freedom of Information Act proceedings, with hundreds of pages identified in the case and some records reportedly redacted or withheld.

Omokri argued that releasing sensitive material could expose personal information, including biometric, familial and financial details.

“You don’t want those records in the hands of your enemies,” he said.