Chuks Okocha in Abuja
United States District judge, Beryl Howell, has issued Donald Trump-appointed attorney, Jeanine Pirro, four additional days to release the drug-trafficking records of Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu.
According to Dr. Von Batten-Montague-York, who disclosed the development in a post on X, Judge Howell noted that the case had been pending for more than three years.
Pirro had reportedly requested an additional 10 days to comply with the order concerning records held by the US Department of Justice, DOJ, Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, and Drug Enforcement Administration, DEA.
However, Judge Howell, granted only four additional days, setting August 21, 2026 as the deadline for compliance.
Von Batten said the development was a renewed effort by Pirro and the Department of Justice to release the records, insisting that the documents should now be made public.
“We deeply appreciate US Attorney Pirro and the DOJ’s renewed motivation to release these documents, and we agree with Judge Howell. This case has been pending for three years. The time to release the Tinubu drug-trafficking files is now,” he wrote.
According to him, US’s strategic interests with Nigeria should not prevent the release of the records.
“As President Trump has indicated, our shared interests with Nigeria do not mean supporting an alleged drug trafficker,” he added.