Tigran Gambaryan’s claims against Nigerian officials, lack credibility – FG

The Federal Government of Nigeria has described Tigran Gambaryan s bribery allegations as baseless, lacking credibility and cannot be substantiated.

Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, in a statement, described the allegations as ” outrageous misinformation and defamatory, urging Nigerians to disregard them.

Tigran Gambaryan, an American personnel of Binance who was recently tried in Nigeria for financial crimes, had in a retaliation, accused some government officials of collecting bribes from him.

But Idris while responding to the allegations, revealed how the “federal government rejected Binance’s offer of a $5 million down payment in exchange for Gambaryan’s freedom, in favour of a more beneficial settlement with the American government.”

He however, stated that while the Federal Government of Nigeria is reluctant to engage the American, due to the high-level diplomatic intervention that resolved his case, “we are compelled to set the record straight to prevent his falsehoods from gaining traction”.

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He disclosed that the first visit of Gambaryan and his colleagues to Nigeria was at their own discretion, which the government was not officially involved.

According to the Minister, “when the Government’s attention was drawn to an alleged bribery demand during that trip, an investigation was immediately launched, despite there being no formal complaint from anyone”.

“Mr. Gambaryan’s second visit to Nigeria was part of a wider probe into the criminal manipulation of the Nigerian currency through peer-to-peer platforms like Binance, but investigators were frustrated by the tactics deployed by Gambaryan and his team,” Idris said.

He disclosed that”Gambaryan was released by the Nigerian government in October 2024 on humanitarian grounds and following a high-level diplomatic intervention that ended with tangible benefits for Nigeria”.

“We categorically deny the retaliatory claims made by Mr. Gambaryan against Nigerian officials involved in his case, and we urge the public to disregard these false accusations in their entirety,” Idris added.

Read also: Court discharges Tigran Gambaryan, Nadeem from tax evasion case against Binance

He therefore, stated that the ” allegations are not only unsubstantiated but also lack credibility, given his apparent motive to discredit and intimidate those who ensured he faced justice.”

He also assured that the federal government is “confident that both the Nigerian and American judicial systems will provide Mr. Gambaryan with a fair opportunity to substantiate his claims in court.

“Until then, we advise the public to exercise caution and not be swayed by Mr. Gambaryan’s unfounded and malicious claims.”