A United States court record has surfaced showing that a man identified as the lobbyist hired by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar was convicted of assault more than two decades ago, according to a report by TheCable.

The report says Karl Von Batten, the Washington based lobbyist engaged by Atiku, was convicted in December 2003 over an assault on his then girlfriend. The details appear in a July 2008 judgment of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, which arose from an appeal filed by the woman, Cynthia Murphy, against a civil protection order made against her. In that judgment the man is named as Karl M.E. Okeke, and TheCable links him to Von Batten because a 2026 filing with the US Department of Justice names the lobbyist under a longer name that includes Okeke.

The appeals court said Okeke was sentenced to 180 days in jail for the July 4, 2003 assault, but the jail term was suspended. He was placed on one year of probation and ordered to stay away from Murphy, complete 50 hours of community service, attend a domestic violence counselling programme and contribute to a fund for crime victims. The appeal itself was about the protection order, which the court overturned, and it was not a retrial of the assault.

Atiku hired Von Batten’s Washington firm in April 2026 under a 12 month agreement reported to be worth $1.2 million. The contract covers government affairs work and strategic advice, including engagement with members of Congress and executive branch officials, and aims to protect and strengthen Atiku’s reputation in Washington.

TheCable said it could not immediately confirm whether Von Batten appealed his conviction, and that its request for comment had not been answered at the time of publication. The lobbyist’s background has already drawn scrutiny in recent weeks over the several names he has used in different filings.