by Joseph Omoremi
A U.S. based lobbyist for erstwhile Nigerian Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, is seeking a $36 million as damages from Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu, Nigerian Ambassador to South Africa Fani Kayode and DCI Group LLC for defamation of character and reputational destruction while conducting advocacy against Nigeria.
The DCI Group A.Z, L.L.C. is a public relations company retained by Nigeria to advance its image in the United States. In a-52-point allegations against the defendants, the plaintiff Dr Karl Von Batten said DCI coordinated vicious attacks and distorted information about him before the U.S. Congress and the White House.
He described his professional activities in Washington D.C. to involve government relations, publicity advocacy, consulting and communications with Congress, Executive branch officials, journalists among others.
Dr. Batten said he was just doing his advocacy job without prejudice when he commented on past records in Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) maintained on Nigeria’s current President Bola Tinubu before a coordinated attacks were mounted against him by the defendants.
He cited his description as a “felon and convicted criminal” by Ambassador Chief Femi-Fani-Kayode as false adding “reputational attacks were meant to destroy his ability to be heard by United States officials.”
Instead of disputing the FBI and DEA records or defending President Tinubu on merits, his personal credibility was attacked. He explained that the defendants attacked his “identity, lengthy legal name, his education history and academic credentials as well as relationship with the White House all in attempt to discredit his advocacy towards being heard.
He described his full name as Karl-Marx Edward Ikemefune William George Okeke-Von Batten but preferred to use a shortened version in professional, academic, governmental, business and public contexts.
“These variations are not fabricated identities nor created for the purpose of deceiving government officials or the public,” Dr. Batten said. He said he had documentation to back his appointment to the Presidential Scholar Commission.
Dr. Batten described himself as an American citizen of Nigerian descent who still maintains family ties to Nigeria and had planned to visit Nigeria this year but the threat of “airport interception, detention and physical consequences” by Chief Fani-Kayode as troubling.
The plaintiff also urged the court to hold DCI accountable to “alleged false factual accusations and other tortious messages distributed through @SecureNigeriaHQ and attributed to DCI.”
He cited a posting on September 16, 2026, at 11:55am where DCI allegedly addressed the plaintiff as “Ikemefuna Okeke @batten_von while attacking his professional activities. He accused DCI of weaponizing his name to create an impression that he had changed, fabricated or concealed his identity.”
In another posting on September 21, 2026 at 11:22am, Batten said DCI posted “if you changed yur name to bury a checkered past, what else are you hiding?”.
