A detained Binance employee had his request for bail on health grounds denied by a Nigerian judge on Friday, after the court declared that illness did not ”entitle [him] to leave custody.”
The court said that “unless the continuous stay of the detainee possesse[d] a harm to others and quarantine isn’t available,” Tigran Gambaryan would need to stay in prison.
Lawyers for Binance’s Gambaryan, who previously led high-profile cyber crime investigations at the Internal Revenue Service, say that he is being detained unlawfully and as a way to extract a bribe from the company.
Nigerian authorities have charged Gambaryan, Binance's current head of financial crime compliance, with money laundering and tax evasion. Gambaryan and his legal team have denied all charges.
Gambaryan's lawyers and family say he is suffering from a wide range of health issues inside the Nigerian prison. A month after a U.S. doctor said the detainee might need surgery or suffer neurological damage, Gambaryan had requested a wheelchair in prison.
The Nigerian government, however, contends that Gambaryan has adequate medical care in prison, adding that “the courtroom is the correct forum to assess the merits of any prosecution.”
Last year, Gambaryan’s company, Binance, admitted to violating rules related to money laundering, unlicensed money transmission, and sanctions in the U.S. The company settled with the Justice Department by agreeing to a $4.3 billion settlement. The CEO of Binance, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, also agreed to step down from Binance as part of the settlement.
“Binance became the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange in part because of the crimes it committed – now it is paying one of the largest corporate penalties in U.S. history,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland at the time.
Behind the scenes, several U.S. government officials are attempting to extricate Gambaryan from his Nigerian prison cell, including the U.S. ambassador to Nigeria, Richard M. Mills Jr.