ABUJA, Nigeria, Monday, April 8, 2024 – A Binance executive, Tigran Gambaryan, has petitioned a federal court in Abuja to compel Nigerian authorities to apologize for his detention and order his immediate release. 1
Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen, filed a fundamental rights lawsuit (FHC/ABJ/CS/356/2024) alleging his ongoing detention violates his constitutional rights.
He claims he was invited to Nigeria on Feb. 26, 2024, by officials from the National Security Adviser’s office (NSA) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to discuss Binance matters. However, Gambaryan and another Binance representative, Nadeem Anjarwalla, were detained following the meeting and remain in custody.
Meanwhile, the spouse of a senior official detained at Binance, a cryptocurrency trading platform, last week appealed to the US Congressional delegation in Nigeria for assistance in securing the release of her husband, Tigran Gambaryan. This comes after Senator Cory Booker led a U.S. Senate delegation to meet with President Bola Tinubu in Abuja earlier in the week.2
Gambaryan’s lawyer, T.J. Krukrubo SAN, argues the detention is baseless and solely used to pressure Binance.
The lawsuit asserts that Gambaryan hasn’t been informed of any charges and that his detention violates his rights. It seeks a court declaration that the detention is unconstitutional, his immediate release, passport return, and a public apology from the respondents.
- nairametrics.com: https://nairametrics.com/2024/03/28/nsa-efcc-must-apologize-for-detaining-me-binance-executive-tells-nigerian-court/[↩]
- nairametrics.com: https://nairametrics.com/2024/03/29/spouse-seeks-us-intervention-as-binance-top-executive-lingers-in-fgs-custody/[↩]
