Binance executives’ families lament EFCC’s continued detention without a court order

The families of two executives from Binance, a cryptocurrency exchange have lamented their continued stay in detention after appearing in court and not been charged with any crime.

Ripples Nigeria reports that Tigran Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen and Binance’s head of financial crime compliance, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, a British-Kenyan who is Binance’s regional manager for Africa, flew to Nigeria following the country’s decision to ban several cryptocurrency trading websites and were detained on arrival on Feb. 26.

Following their continued detention their families have appealed to the Nigerian authorities to release them as the court order to hold Nadeem and Tigran expired on March 12th and a request for a new order which was filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was not granted by the judge.

Throughout their detention the families of Tigran and Nadeem have continued to plead with the Nigerian authorities for the release of their loved ones. Tomorrow is Nadeem’s only son’s first birthday and on April 5th, Tigran’s son will turn 5. With their continued detention, both fathers will now miss key milestones in their childrens’ lives, the families said.

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In a statement obtained by Ripples Nigeria, the wives of Nadeem and Tigran have shared the following statements:

Elahe Anjarwalla, Nadeem’s wife said, “I am completely heartbroken. I was holding on to the hope that Nadeem would be home in time to celebrate our son’s first birthday together and I am devastated this won’t be happening.

“Nadeem has no authority to make high level decisions at Binance and I am once again asking from the bottom of my heart that the Nigerian authorities please allow him and Tigran to return home whilst they continue their discussions with Binance. I am also calling on the British and Kenyan governments to do more to get Nadeem back home to us. Please, we just want this nightmare to end.”

On her part, Yuki Gambaryan said, “Tigran was only supposed to be away from us for a very short trip and now over 3 weeks later we have no idea when we will see him again. I don’t know what to tell our two children who rush to the door every time they hear a car, eagerly hoping that their father has finally returned from a very long work trip. Tigran is globally recognized for his work in law enforcement and many of his peers would say that Tigran’s continuous efforts are what keep crypto currencies safe and clean.

“Please let him come home to continue this good work. The longer that our husbands are away from our families, the harder it is becoming for us to go about our daily lives. We are asking you from the bottom of our hearts and with the deepest respect that you please release them so that our families can be complete once again.”

By: Babajide Okeowo

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