US activist Aaron Greenspan asks a Washington court to let him question Nigerian President Bola Tinubu about alleged cyberattacks.
An American man named Aaron Greenspan, who runs an internet group that checks public records called PlainSite, has gone to a big court in America to ask for permission to question the President of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The activist filed new legal papers before a United States District Court judge in Washington, D.C., on Monday, September 21, 2026.
This whole story started because Aaron Greenspan wants United States government security agencies like the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to release secret files from the 1990s.
Greenspan says he needs those official papers to show the public what happened in old government investigations involving President Tinubu and other people.
However, the case took a new turn when Greenspan told the court that he and his website have been facing heavy online attacks.
In his new court papers, the activist claimed that people working for or supporting the Nigerian government have been trying to hack his computer systems and bring down his website using powerful cyberattacks.
Because of these online attacks, Greenspan wants the American judge to allow him to ask President Tinubu direct questions under oath to find out who is behind the internet troubles.
Explaining his reason to the judge, Greenspan wrote in the court papers: “Plaintiff respectfully requests leave of the Court to serve written discovery on Intervenor Bola Ahmed Tinubu regarding the cyberattacks that have been targeted at Plaintiff, his organization, and his service providers.”
He told the court that the cyberattacks started getting worse as he kept demanding that the American security agencies hand over the documents.
Greenspan also told the judge that President Tinubu chose to join the court case on his own to protect his private life and stop the release of the government files.
Because President Tinubu entered the case as an active participant, Greenspan believes the President should answer questions about the online attacks.
Greenspan argued that anyone who voluntarily joins an American court case must be ready to answer questions when serious issues like illegal hacking come up.
The activist explained to the court that the online trouble is not just a small computer glitch, but a planned effort to stop him from doing his work. In his court paper, Greenspan stated: “These attacks appear intended to intimidate, disrupt, and prevent the public from accessing court records and information regarding this case.”
He believes that getting answers directly from President Tinubu will help the court understand if people connected to the Nigerian government are behind the hacking attempt.
The American security agencies, including the FBI and the DEA, have told the court before that they cannot confirm or deny if they have any files on President Tinubu because of privacy laws.
But Greenspan claims that since President Tinubu is now the head of a whole country, the public has a right to know the truth about both the old files and the recent cyberattacks.
The court in Washington, D.C., is expected to look at Greenspan’s request and decide whether to allow him to send the questions to President Tinubu or reject the application.
Jennifer Baba is a journalist, international news correspondent, and writer at Moderncrux, where she covers artificial intelligence, fintech, emerging technologies, global politics, and international affairs. Based in Nigeria, she is passionate about transforming complex global developments into clear, engaging stories that inform and inspire readers.
