After a seven-month legal clash with Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan, Nigerian Federal prosecutors have withdrawn fraud and money laundering charges against him.
A Nigerian court on Wednesday then issued orders to release Gambaryan, who has been held in detention in the country’s Kuje Prison since late February this year when he was arrested.Gambaryan, alongside another executive of Binance Nadeem Anjarwalla, were accused of allowing their platform to be used as a leeway for tax evasion and money laundering.The Nigerian government, through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alleged that more than US$35 million was laundered through the cryptocurrency platform.
“The government has reviewed the case and, taking into consideration that the second defendant (Gambaryan) is an employee of the first defendant (Binance Holdings Limited), whose status in the matter has more impact than the second defendant’s, and also taking into consideration some critical international and diplomatic reasons, the state seeks to discontinue the case against the second defendant,” EFCC’s lawyer, R. U. Adagba told Nigerian media.
Gambaryan’s defence counsel also pushed for a full acquittal of their client, citing that his health has deteriorated because of the case. The prosecutors opposed this, stating that their decision to drop charges was not due to insufficient evidence but consideration to the accused’s health.
“We ask the court to expedite everything to ensure the second defendant leaves the facility of the correctional centre,” Gambaryan’s lawyer, Mark Mordi said.
Gambaryan Leaves Nigeria
Gambaryan left Nigeria on Thursday after he was released from Kuje Prison on Wednesday night. The executive, who is a US citizen, contracted Malaria, Pneumonia, and Tonsillitis whilst in prison. He also needed a wheelchair due to complications with a herniated disc in his back, a condition which required instant surgery.
These perils prompted the US government to intervene and advocate his release. The pressure to have him released mounted after a series of interviews with his wife, Yuki Gambaryan, which illustrated the ordeals the family has faced due to her husband’s detention.
“It is a huge relief that this day has finally come. The past eight months have been a living nightmare. I wish it hadn’t taken this long for his release, or that his health had not declined so much, but we can now focus on healing as a family,” Yuki Gambaryan said in a statement on Thursday.
Anjarwalla, a British-Kenyan national, escaped Nigerian authorities and headed to Nairobi in March. Gambaryan was arraigned alone in April. The case against Binance will resume in late November.