A Washington lobbying firm that has spent months pressing for the release of American law enforcement records about Nigeria’s president said on Wednesday that its managing partner had been offered $3 million and a secret meeting in London to abandon the effort, an allegation that it said it would refer to the Justice Department and the F.B.I.
The firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C., made the claim in a post on X, saying the approach had come “a few days ago” from “a highly placed individual whom we have been informed is connected to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu.” It did not name the individual, produce the communications or offer evidence of the person’s ties to Mr. Tinubu.
“We believe these offers were an attempt to persuade Dr. Von Batten to end our campaign concerning President Tinubu’s alleged heroin-trafficking records,” the firm wrote, referring to Karl Von Batten, its managing partner. It said Mr. Von Batten had refused, preserved copies of the exchanges and contacted the campaign of Atiku Abubakar, the former vice president who is Mr. Tinubu’s chief rival, “to determine the nature of the individual’s relationship with President Tinubu.”
The firm said it would provide “the $3 million offer and related communications” to “our friends” at the Justice Department and the F.B.I. “to protect our reputation and allow the appropriate authorities to review the matter.” It did not say when.
They closed with a taunt aimed at Tinubu and his governing All Progressives Congress: “Thank you for the offer, but no thanks.”
The allegation could not be independently verified. The firm has not identified who made the offer or through what channel, and it is unclear whether the person had any actual connection to the Nigerian government. The presidency in Abuja has not publicly addressed the specific claim.
The episode is the latest escalation in a dispute that has migrated from an American courtroom into the center of Nigerian politics, where a 33-year-old civil forfeiture case has become a proxy battle over Mr. Tinubu’s fitness to seek a second term in 2027.
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