By Abiola Olawale
One of the two Binance executives detained in Nigeria over allegations of manipulating foreign exchange trading, and tax evasion, among others, has reportedly escaped from the custody of the security agencies.
It was gathered that Mr. Nadeem Anjarwalla escaped from custody where he was kept on Friday, March 22, 2024.
Reports indicate that Anjarwalla, 38, reportedly ran away from the Abuja guest house where he and his colleague were detained after guards on duty led him to a nearby mosque for prayers in the spirit of the ongoing Ramadan fast.
Media reports said the two detained Binance executives were held at a “comfortable guest house” and allowed many rights, including the use of telephones, a privilege Anjarwalla is believed to have exploited to plot an escape.
The Briton, who also has Kenyan citizenship, is believed to have flown out of Abuja using a Middle East airliner.
Though the authorities have already begun their search and investigation, they are yet to unravel how Anjarwalla was able to travel out of the country even though they have seized his passports, with which he entered Nigeria.
The reports added that the authorities are already working to unravel his intended destination in a bid to get him back into custody.
The New Diplomat reports that Anjarwalla, Binance’s Africa regional manager, and Tigran Gambaryan, a US citizen overseeing financial crime compliance at the crypto exchange platform, were detained upon their arrival in Nigeria on 26 February 2024.
Subsequently, a criminal charge was filed against the two executives before a Magistrate Court in Abuja. On 28 February 2024, the court granted the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) an order to remand the duo for 14 days. The court also ordered Binance to provide the Nigerian government with the data/information of Nigerians trading on its platform.
Following Binance’s refusal to comply with the order, the court extended the remand of the officials for an additional 14 days to prevent them from tampering with evidence. The court then adjourned the case till 4 April 2024.
Also on 22 March, the Nigerian government approached the Federal High Court in Abuja and slammed another four-count charge on Binance Holdings Limited, Anjarwalla, and Gambaryan, accusing them of offering services to subscribers on their platform while failing to register with the Federal Inland Revenue Service to pay all relevant taxes administered by the Service and in so doing, committed an offense, contrary to and punishable under Section 8 of the Value Added Tax Act of 1993 (as Amended).
The defendants were also accused of offering taxable services to subscribers on their trading platform while failing to issue invoices to those subscribers to determine and pay their value-added taxes and, in so doing, committed an offense contrary to and punishable under S.29 of the Value Added Tax Act of 1993 (as amended).
