Members of the US House of Representatives French Hill and Chrissy Hoolahan visited Tigran Gambarian, Vice President for Global Intelligence and Investigations of the Binance cryptocurrency exchange, who is in Nigerian prison.
Yesterday, @RepHoulahan and I visited with US citizen Tigran Gambaryan in Kuje Prison in Nigeria. We found him suffering from the conditions there, as he has malaria and double pneumonia, and he reports that he has lost significant weight. Even worse, he's being denied access to… pic.twitter.com/OKEHMXxuF4
— French Hill (@RepFrenchHill) June 20, 2024According to them, the top manager suffers from malaria and bilateral pneumonia, he has lost a lot of weight, but access to adequate medical care is denied to him.
Hill appealed to the US Embassy to facilitate the humanitarian release of Gambarian, given the terrible conditions in prison and his health condition.
Earlier, members of the US Congress and a group of American ex-officials called on President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to help Gambarian return to his homeland.
Meanwhile, the trial in Nigeria in the case of Binance and its top managers regarding money laundering resumed. On June 20, a witness from the local Securities and Exchange Commission was cross-examined.
Binance, for its part, notified of the appointment of Ayodele Omotileva as an authorized representative of the exchange in the country, who will act as a defendant in the proceedings on tax charges.
Last week, the Federal Tax Service of Nigeria (FIRS) withdrew claims directly against Gambarian and his colleague Nadim Andjarwalla.
Gambaryan's wife Yuki called on the Commission on Economic and Financial Crimes to follow the example of FIRS and release her husband, writes Cointelegraph.
"It's time for the Nigerian authorities to do the right thing and release my innocent husband. Tigran and I receive tax dollars annually as aid to Nigeria. The country must be an ally. I refuse to believe that our State Department cannot do more to free an innocent American citizen," she said.
Recall that in addition to tax evasion and money laundering, the Nigerian authorities accuse Binance Holdings Limited of conducting specialized financial activities without a license. Potentially, the company faces a fine of $ 10 billion.
The exchange denies guilt and calls for the release of its employee.