Detained Binance executive family begs FG for his release

Tigran Gambaryan, former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agent and Binance’s head of financial crime compliance’s wife, has expressed deep concern and frustration over the continuous incarceration of her husband, pleading with the Federal Government to set him free.

In an appeal to Fortune, an American global business magazine, Yuki Gambaryan said she is doing what she can, including launching a ‘Bring Tigran home’ website.

She said, “The hardest part is when it comes to my children, who are 5 and 10. While I had semi-regular phone calls with my husband, they were arranged at times when the children were asleep or at school, leaving them to ask me if they would see their father again. I don’t know how to comfort them. I am begging the Nigerian authorities to let him go home.

“Every day it’s nothing but frustration for our family. Six months is a long time for an innocent man to be detained, and the fear of losing him is all-consuming.”

Richard Teng, Binance CEO, also recently stated in a blog post, “I am deeply concerned about the long-term, potentially irreversible physical and mental impact this horrific episode is having on Tigran, and I appeal once again for the Nigerian government to allow him to go home to his family on humanitarian grounds so that he can seek the appropriate medical treatment in the US, recover, and get back to the healthy, active life he previously had.”

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Gambaryan’s ordeal began when he and Nadeem Anjarwalla travelled to Nigeria in February to act as an emissary for the company, which was negotiating settlements with governments around the world regarding poor compliance practices. He and Anjarwalla were arrested on money laundering and tax evasion charges. In March, BusinessDay reported that the Federal Government was seeking a payment of $10 billion from Binance.

According to his wife, Gambaryan has fallen ill in prison following severe bouts of malaria. She stated that he is now immobile and unable to leave his cell, and the government has refused to provide him with a wheelchair.

According to Fortune, Gambaryan’s plight has also produced concern and sympathy among others in the cybersecurity world, where he is widely respected for helping to track down drug lords, terrorists, and child pornographers. “Gambaryan’s exploits led him to become a principal protagonist in Tracers in the Dark, a recent book about the ‘dark web.’

In response to Fortune’s inquiry about whether Gambaryan will receive the special designation, a State Department spokesperson said via email, “The Department reviews the circumstances surrounding the detentions of all U.S. nationals overseas for indicators that they are wrongful. When making these assessments, the Department looks at the totality of the circumstances for each case individually. We will continue to monitor Tigran Gambaryan’s case closely.”