US lawmakers have accused the Nigerian government of holding Tigran Gambaryan, a Binance executive, “hostage.” In a report by Bloomberg on Wednesday, the lawmakers, in a letter dated June 4, urged President Joe Biden to help secure Gambaryan’s release.
Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee,Michael McCaul, along with fifteen Republican congressmen, wrote to Biden, asking that Gambaryan’s case be referred to the office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs. Gambaryan, a US citizen and head of financial crime compliance at Binance, has been detained in Nigeria since February over money laundering allegations.
On May 17, a federal high court in Abuja denied Gambaryan bail, citing the risk that he might jump bail.This decision followed the escape of Nadeem Anjarwalla, Binance’s regional manager for Africa, from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in Nigeria. Anjarwalla reportedly escaped during a Ramadan prayer visit to a nearby mosque.
In their letter, the US lawmakers described the charges against Gambaryan as baseless and a tactic by the Nigerian government to coerce Binance. They asserted that Gambaryan qualifies as a “US citizen wrongfully detained by a foreign government” and expressed concerns for his health and safety, calling for immediate action to ensure his well-being.
The letter was also addressed to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Roger Carstens, the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs. However, Nigeria’s minister of information, Muhammed Idris, refuted the claims, stating that Gambaryan is being lawfully detained and is not in danger. Idris emphasised Nigeria’s commitment to ensuring that all individuals under investigation or trial are treated according to the law.
In April, Gambaryan was held at a guest house before formal charges were brought against him and Binance in an Abuja court. The charges include non-payment of value-added tax and corporate income tax, and aiding customers in tax evasion through the Binance platform. Gambaryan is currently detained at the Kuje Correctional Centre. His court hearing, originally scheduled for May 23, was adjourned to June 20 after his lawyer reported that he was too ill to proceed.
