Nigerian Court Adjourns Bail Application Hearing for Binance Executive

Bittime - A Nigerian court has again postponed the bail application hearing for Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan. He is currently still being held at the Kuje Correctional Center. The trial was postponed to April 22, 2024, on the grounds that the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) needed time to respond to new arguments put forward by Gambaryan's defense team.

Postponement of Bail Hearing

The bail application hearing originally scheduled for April 18, 2024, was postponed at the request of the EFCC. According to a report by local news agency Nairametrics, the EFCC stated that Gambaryan's lawyer had submitted additional documents regarding his bail application on April 16, 2024.

EFCC senior counsel, E. Iheanacho, argued that the new points raised by Gambaryan's defense team needed time to be studied and responded to appropriately in order to uphold justice. The judge presiding over the trial, Emeka Nwite, agreed to the postponement.

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Criticism from Gambaryan Lawyers

Mark Mordi, Gambaryan's lawyer, criticized the EFCC for not responding to additional documents submitted regarding his client's bail application. Mordi also stressed that Gambaryan had been detained in a federal government facility for more than 14 days.

Case Background

Earlier, a Federal High Court Judge in Abuja rejected Gambaryan's pre-trial application and ordered him to remain in custody. Gambaryan was indicted by the EFCC on charges of money laundering. The EFCC accused Binance, Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla of hiding the source of $35.4 million in income in Nigeria, which allegedly came from illegal activities.

After the EFCC's indictment was accepted by the court, Mordi requested that Gambaryan be released on bail. However, the court allowed the EFCC to detain Binance executives for 14 days and ordered Binance to provide data and information regarding Nigerian traders who use their platform to the government.

Also Read: Cryptocurrency Regulations in Nigeria

Binance Sued on Two Laws

Binance and its executives face two separate lawsuits. The first is a lawsuit from the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) regarding alleged tax evasion and the second from the EFCC regarding allegations of money laundering and foreign currency violations.

Apart from that, Tigran Gambaryan also sued the Nigerian government for alleged human rights violations. Gambaryan's lawsuit states that his detention and confiscation of his passport violates Nigeria's constitution which guarantees a person's right to liberty.

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Arrest Chronology

On February 28, 2024, Nigerian authorities arrested two senior Binance executives, namely Nadeem Anjarwalla, a 37-year-old British-Kenyan citizen who served as head of Binance's Africa operations, and Gambaryan, a 39-year-old United States citizen. 

This arrest came after the Nigerian federal government banned crypto asset transactions as part of a campaign to curb currency speculation. However, Nadeem Anjarwalla managed to escape from detention using a fake passport.

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Also Read:

Binance Fugitive! Top Official Escapes Arrest in Nigeria

Binance Says Exit from Nigeria: Danger Signal for the Future of Crypto?

Crypto Threatened in Nigeria? Platform Stops USDT & USDC Purchases

DISCLAIMER : This article is informational in nature and is not an offer or invitation to sell or buy any crypto assets. Trading crypto assets is a high-risk activity. Crypto asset prices are volatile, where prices can change significantly from time to time and Bittime is not responsible for changes in fluctuations in crypto asset exchange rates.