A United States lobbying firm has confirmed that it filed a civil action on 28 September 2026 in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia against President Bola Tinubu, the Federal Government of Nigeria, Ambassador Femi Fani Kayode and DCI Group.
Von Batten Montague York, L.C. said the claim is for defamation and an alleged conspiracy to kidnap and physically harm its principal, Dr Karl Von Batten. The firm said it withheld public notice of the filing while service was being effected on the foreign parties under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.
The sums claimed are 36 million dollars jointly against President Tinubu and the Federal Government of Nigeria, 3 million dollars against Ambassador Fani Kayode personally, and 18 million dollars against DCI Group. Court records list the action as Von Batten v. Tinubu and others, case number 1:26 cv 03374, before Judge Randolph D. Moss. The docket describes the nature of the suit as assault, libel and slander, with the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act cited as the cause. Named defendants include Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Federal Government of the Republic of Nigeria, Femi Fani Kayode, DCI Group AZ, LLC, and John Does 1 to 10. The plaintiff is Karl Von Batten.
In its announcement, the firm said the claims against the President and the Federal Government will face legal hurdles because of sovereign immunity. It said it was proceeding nonetheless, alleging that a conspiracy was undertaken to defame Dr Von Batten, kidnap him and physically harm him in an effort to silence his advocacy before the White House and Congress. That advocacy, the firm said, concerns Federal Bureau of Investigation and Drug Enforcement Administration records relating to President Tinubu and allegations of heroin trafficking.
The filing follows a public statement by the same firm on 23 September 2026 that it had been cleared to sue over alleged threats of kidnap and physical harm, which it attributed to Ambassador Fani Kayode and described as part of an organised conspiracy involving the Nigerian presidency. Nigerian reports have identified the firm as a lobbyist engaged by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. Those reports have not been confirmed in the court announcement itself.
Ambassador Fani Kayode, Nigeria’s envoy to South Africa and a former minister, rejected the allegations before the suit was filed. He challenged the firm to publish any evidence of threats by him, the President or the Federal Government, and said he would seek at least 100 million dollars for what he called libellous falsehood, together with extradition proceedings in Nigeria under cybercrime and criminal defamation laws.
By A.Ikechukwu
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