The Nigerian Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has accused the Nigerian Correctional Service of failing to present Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan at the Federal High Court in Abuja for his tax evasion case. According to local reports, Gambaryan did not appear in court on May 22 for his arraignment on tax evasion charges.
Uncertainty in Court
During the court session, prosecution counsel Moses Idehu expressed confusion over Gambaryan’s absence. Idehu explained that they had not been able to contact officials at the correctional center to clarify why Gambaryan was not brought to court. He requested a temporary adjournment to later in the day to resolve the issue. However, Judge Emeka Nwite decided to postpone Gambaryan’s arraignment to June 14.
Binance’s lawyer, T.J. Krukrubo, protested the prosecution’s failure to present his client in court. Meanwhile, Gambaryan’s lawyer, Chukwuka Ikwuazo, requested the judge to remove the name of co-defendant Nadeem Anjarwalla from the amended charges, as he is currently “at large.” The FIRS lawyer agreed to this adjustment.
Background on Charges by the Nigerian Government
Gambaryan was transferred to the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja in April 2024 after pleading not guilty to money laundering charges brought by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC). His bail application was denied, and he remains in detention. The charges involve concealing the source of funds generated by Binance in Nigeria, totaling $35.4 million.
In March, the FIRS filed tax evasion charges against Binance and its executives, Gambaryan and Anjarwalla. The charges included failure to register with the FIRS, failure to pay company income tax, failure to pay value-added tax, and facilitating tax evasion.
The Nigerian government has accused Binance of influencing foreign exchange rates, leading to stricter oversight of cryptocurrency trading platforms. Nigerian authorities detained Anjarwalla, Binance’s Kenya-based regional manager for Africa, and Gambaryan, a former U.S. federal agent focused on cryptocurrency investigations, on February 28.
