{"id":2062,"date":"2024-07-17T17:20:51","date_gmt":"2024-07-17T21:20:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ielrblog.com\/?p=2062"},"modified":"2024-07-17T17:20:51","modified_gmt":"2024-07-17T21:20:51","slug":"binance-money-laundering-trial-adjourned-in-nigeria","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ielrblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/17\/binance-money-laundering-trial-adjourned-in-nigeria\/","title":{"rendered":"BINANCE MONEY LAUNDERING TRIAL ADJOURNED IN NIGERIA"},"content":{"rendered":"

Judge Emeka Nwite Adjourns Trial to October<\/h1>\n

By Kaila Hall<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

On Tuesday, July 16, 2024, Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned1<\/sup> the money laundering trial of cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance alongside two of its executives. The trial will now occur on October 11 after the Nigerian Court\u2019s federal holiday. Binance\u2019s Head of Financial Crime Compliance, Tigran Gambaryan, and regional African manager, Nadeem Anjarwalla have faced a series of legal charges, for which they have pleaded not guilty.<\/p>\n

Following reports of Gambaryan\u2019s deteriorating health, Justice Nwite also issued2<\/sup> an arrest warrant on Tuesday for Dr. Abraham Ehizojie, the medical doctor at the Kuje Correctional Health Centre where Gambaryan was detained. The Binance executive arrived3<\/sup> at his Tuesday hearing in a wheelchair. Gambaryan\u2019s lawyer, Mark Mordi, explained that his client has back pain and stated, \u201cWe need to be careful of the life in our hands.\u201d4<\/sup> On July 5, Justice Nwite ordered the release of Gambaryan\u2019s medical report by July 16. However, Dr. Ehizojie refused to provide it to Nigeria\u2019s Federal High Court.<\/p>\n

On February 28, 2024, Nigerian officials arrested5<\/sup> Tigran Gambaryan, Binance\u2019s Head of Financial Crime Compliance, and his colleague, Nadeem Anjarwalla upon their arrival in the country for a meeting on the government ban on cryptocurrency channels. While Gambaryan remained in custody, Anjarwalla fled Nigeria in March. On March 22, 2024, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) filed tax evasion charges against both executives. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) also accused Binance of laundering more than $35 million through its platform. Although FIRS dropped6<\/sup> their tax evasion charges in June, Gambaryan and Anjarwalla continue to face money laundering charges.<\/p>\n

The decision to adjourn the money laundering case came just a week after Congressman Richard McCormick and Congressman French Hill introduced House Resolution 1348,7<\/sup> urging the Government of Nigeria to immediately release Tigran Gambaryan from imprisonment. The resolution also \u201curges the United States Government to formally declare Tigran Gambaryan as a \u2018U.S. citizen wrongfully detained by a foreign government\u2019 pursuant to section 302(a) of the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 1741(a)).\u201d8<\/sup><\/p>\n

In early June, 16 Members of Congress also sent a letter9<\/sup> to President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, requesting their assistance in releasing Gambaryan. The letter described the \u201cexcessive and harsh treatment\u201d that Gambaryan has faced while detained in the notorious Kuje prison on baseless charges by the Nigerian government. Congressmen also noted that he was denied access to his legal team \u201cwithout the presence of government officials and armed guards.\u201d The Members of Congress called on Biden administration officials to classify Gambaryan as a \u201cU.S. Citizen wrongfully detained by a foreign government,\u201d as defined under the \u201cRobert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Kaila Hall is an intern at IELR. She is a rising senior at Cornell University.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1] Eboh, Camillus. \u201cNigerian Judge Adjourns Binance Money Laundering Trial to October.\u201d Reuters<\/em>, 16 July 2024, www.reuters.com\/world\/africa\/nigerian-judge-adjourns-binance-money-laundering-trial-october-2024-07-16\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[2] \u201cCourt Orders Arrest of Prison Doctor over Binance Executive\u2019s Health.\u201d Punch Newspapers<\/em>, 16 July 2024, punchng.com\/court-orders-arrest-of-prison-doctor-over-binance-executives-health\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[3] Nigeria, News Agency of. \u201cBinance Executive Gambaryan Arrives Courtroom in Wheelchair.\u201d Peoples Gazette Nigeria<\/em>, 16 July 2024, gazettengr.com\/binance-executive-gambaryan-arrives-courtroom-in-wheelchair\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[4] Reporters, Our. \u201cCourt Orders Arrest of Prison Doctor over Binance Executive\u2019s Health.\u201d Punch Newspapers<\/em>, 16 July 2024, punchng.com\/court-orders-arrest-of-prison-doctor-over-binance-executives-health\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[5] Egbejule, Eromo. \u201cBinance Executive Denied Bail in Nigeria over Money Laundering Charges.\u201d The Guardian, 17 May 2024, www.theguardian.com\/technology\/article\/2024\/may\/17\/binance-executive-denied-bail-in-nigeria-over-money-laundering-charges<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[6] Hall, Kaila. \u201cBINANCE RELIEVED after TAX EVASION CHARGES DROPPED.\u201d IELR Blog<\/em>, 19 June 2024, ielrblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/06\/18\/binance-relieved-after-tax-evasion-charges-dropped\/. \u200c<\/p>\n

[7] McCormick, Richard. \u201cH.Res.1348 – Urging the Government of Nigeria to Immediately Release Tigran Gambaryan from Imprisonment.\u201d Congress.gov<\/em>, 10 July 2024, www.congress.gov\/bill\/118th-congress\/house-resolution\/1348\/text<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[8] Melendez, Bob. \u201cS.712 – Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act.\u201d Congress.gov<\/em>, 7 Mar. 2019, www.congress.gov\/bill\/116th-congress\/senate-bill\/712.<\/p>\n

\u200c[9] U.S. Congress. \u201cLetter to President Biden, Secretary Blinken, and Special Presidential Envoy Carstens.\u201d House Foreign Affairs Committee, 4 June 2024, foreignaffairs.house.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/McCormick-Letter-Gambaryan.pdf<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Judge Emeka Nwite Adjourns Trial to October By Kaila Hall   On Tuesday, July 16, 2024, Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned1 the money laundering trial of cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance alongside two of its executives. The trial will now occur on October 11 after the Nigerian Court\u2019s federal holiday. Binance\u2019s Head of Financial Crime Compliance, Tigran […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2062","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-extradition","7":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\nBINANCE MONEY LAUNDERING TRIAL ADJOURNED IN NIGERIA | IELR Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ielrblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/17\/binance-money-laundering-trial-adjourned-in-nigeria\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BINANCE MONEY LAUNDERING TRIAL ADJOURNED IN NIGERIA | IELR Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Judge Emeka Nwite Adjourns Trial to October By Kaila Hall   On Tuesday, July 16, 2024, Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned1 the money laundering trial of cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance alongside two of its executives. 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