TD Washington, D.C., USA — Dr. Karl Von Batten, founder of Washington, D.C.-based lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C., says attempts to serve legal papers on Sahara Reporters in connection with a $26 million federal defamation lawsuit were not successful because the publication allegedly does not maintain an office at the New York address it lists.
Von Batten-Montague-York disclosed the development in a statement posted on X.
It said that process servers engaged to deliver the summons and complaint were directed to Sahara Reporters’ listed New York address.
However, they were informed that the media organisation did not have an office in the building.
The claim comes days after Von Batten filed Von Batten v. Sahara Reporters Media Group, Inc., et al., Case No. 1:26-cv-03209, at the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
The lawsuit seeks $26 million in damages over publications the lobbyist describes as false and defamatory.
Firm requests current address
In the statement, Von Batten-Montague-York said its process servers had attempted to serve Sahara Reporters at the address the organisation identifies as its official New York address.
“Our process servers have attempted to serve the summons and complaint (lawsuit) on @SaharaReporters Media Group, Inc. at the address it lists as its official New York address,” the firm said.
It added that the process servers were informed that Sahara Reporters does not have an office in the building.
The firm is now asking Sahara Reporters to provide a current address and contact person where the court documents can be properly served.
According to the statement, the requested information should be supplied by 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, September 30, through the email addresses provided by the firm.
Threat of alternative service
Von Batten-Montague-York said that if Sahara Reporters does not provide the requested information by the deadline, it will ask the federal court for permission to use other legally authorised methods of service.
The firm specifically mentioned the possibility of serving the defendants through publications on X, subject to court approval.
That would require the court to authorise the alternative method.
The firm’s statement itself does not establish that such permission has been granted.
The service issue could become an important procedural step in the case.
Defendants generally must be properly served before litigation can proceed against them in the ordinary course.
$26m defamation lawsuit
Von Batten filed the federal lawsuit earlier this month against Sahara Reporters Media Group, Inc. and writer Ademola Wasiu Olalekan Bello.
The case followed a September 14 Sahara Reporters publication concerning Von Batten.
The publication alleged, among other things, that the lobbyist had used multiple aliases and fabricated academic credentials.
It also claimed that Von Batten had received $1.2 million from former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar.
Von Batten says allegations are defamatory
Von Batten disputes those allegations and characterises them as defamatory.
The lobbying firm has also alleged that the publications form part of what it describes as a coordinated campaign.
It alleged that the publications are aimed at undermining its efforts.
The firm has been striving to obtain the public release of FBI and DEA records relating to historical drug-trafficking allegations involving Nigerian President Bola Tinubu.
Those broader allegations are claims advanced by Von Batten and have not been established as findings of fact by the federal court.
The existence of the lawsuit itself has been independently reported.
Meanwhile, subsequent reporting indicates that the litigation has expanded to include additional defendants.
Von Batten escalates pressure
In a separate message addressed to the defendants and what he described as their proxies, Von Batten adopted a more confrontational tone.
He urged them to accept service and allow the legal proceedings to begin.
He said the United States legal system would determine the dispute.
The firm further claimed that he had already received an unsolicited email asking him to drop the lawsuit.
He also alleged that the litigation involves claims concerning a broader conspiracy and possible efforts to harm Von Batten physically.
Those assertions remain allegations made by the plaintiff and have not been adjudicated by the court.
The firm has previously said Von Batten is proceeding pro se at the current stage of the litigation, while receiving support from an independent legal team.
Legal battle expands
The dispute has continued to widen since the original complaint was filed.
Public statements from Von Batten-Montague-York indicate that the firm has also moved to add journalist Laolu Akande, Empowered Newswire and Channels Television to the litigation over subsequent statements and broadcasts concerning Von Batten.
Reporting on the amended complaint says it adds claims including defamation, libel per se and defamation by implication.
For now, however, a key procedural question is whether Sahara Reporters and the other defendants can be formally served with the federal complaint.
Von Batten-Montague-York says it wants Sahara Reporters to provide a valid address before the September 30 deadline.
If that does not happen, the firm says it will seek judicial authorisation for an alternative method of service.
The court will ultimately determine whether the requested methods are legally sufficient and how the underlying defamation claims proceed.
