Tigran Gambaryan, the Binance executive detained in Nigeria, was denied bail on his 40th birthday, according to a court hearing in Abuja on Friday.
According to Nigerian media outlet Punch News, Judge Emeka Nwite ordered the crypto exchange’s Head of Compliance to stay in prison, citing his potential to jump bail if granted.
Gambaryan was originally detained alongside Binance’s Regional Manager for Africa, Nadeem Anjarwalla, in late February before being charged with money laundering and tax evasion.
Anjarwalla later fled on foot and is still at large, despite earlier reports alleging that the Binance executive was recaptured in Kenya.
On this very unhappy birthday, a reminder that @TigranGambaryan has been dedicated to public service and fighting crime for most of his life. These charges against him are completely meritless. He should be freed while discussions continue between Binance and Nigerian government…
— Noah Perlman (@NoahBPerlman) May 17, 2024
“I truly cannot believe my innocent husband is now – on his 40th birthday – having to face a trial for charges he has nothing to do with,” Tigran’s wife Yuki Gambaryan said in a statement originally published by DL News. “The whole world is watching what he is being put through and I just pray that common sense and justice will prevail and that Tigran will be allowed to come home to us.”
Earlier this month, Binance CEO Richard Teng addressed the situation publicly for the first time in a blog post on the crypto exchange’s website. In it, he alleged that employees were originally approached by “unknown persons” in the African country who promised “to make these issues go away” should the crypto company accept a secret settlement.
According to the New York Times, the
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