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Tigran Gambaryan, a Binance executive who was held in Nigeria for eight months in 2024 facing tax and money laundering charges, provided additional details about his experience and what led to his release.
Speaking at the DC Blockchain Summit on March 26, Gambaryan, the head of financial crime compliance at Binance, said the Nigerian government had held him hostage, suggesting the criminal charges were a pretext to “get something” from Binance. According to the Binance executive, he saw signs suggesting he could be released “around a month” before he was returned to the US.
“It was around the time of the [United Nations] General Assembly in 2024 happened is when that pressure really ramped up against the Nigerian government, and it realized that I was more of a liability,” said Gambaryan. “Before that, they kinda saw me as an asset they could use to get their billions out of Binance.”
Since his handover to US authorities in October, Gambaryan has made few public statements concerning his detention and release. The Binance executive’s family and reports from Nigeria suggested that his health deteriorated after he was initially placed into custody in February, including issues from pneumonia, malaria, and a herniated disc.
From arrest to release
Gambaryan and Binance executive Nadeem Anjarwalla flew into Nigeria’s capital city of Abuja on Feb. 25 to discuss the crypto exchange’s activities. Nigerian authorities had reportedly been scrutinizing “suspicious flows” through Binance’s local arm and detained both men on Feb. 26.
While Gambaryan was being held, Binance announced it would discontinue services using the Nigerian naira, effectively exiting the country’s market. Nigeria’s Economic Financial Crime Commission later charged the two executives with money laundering, to which Gambaryan pleaded not guilty.
Related: Binance suspends staffer after internal investigation into insider trading
He was denied bail and sent to Kuje Prison, where his family reported he began suffering from health problems — a video released in September showed Gambaryan struggling to walk to court, prompting outrage from many supporters. After numerous calls from lawmakers and government officials for his release and delays in court, Gambaryan was returned to the United States on Oct. 23.
“Hopefully, those that did this will one day face justice,” said Gambaryan at the DC Blockchain Summit, referring to Nigerian authorities.
A March 13 statement that appeared to be from Nigeria’s Ministry of Information claimed Gambaryan’s description of his detention was “baseless” and “without merit.” Cointelegraph reached out to Nigerian officials for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
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