A federal high court in Abuja has refused to grant bail to Tigran Gambaryan, an executive of Binance Holdings Limited, a cryptocurrency firm.
Justice Emeka Nwite, in a ruling, held that based on the affidavit evidence before him, Gambaryan would jump bail if the application was granted.
“I have carefully considered the affidavit evidence before me and I am of the view that the applicant will jump bail if granted bail,” Justice Nwite declared.
However, the judge ordered for an accelerated hearing in the trial.
On April 23, 2024, Justice Nwite set the ruling for Friday after counsel for the EFCC, Ekele Iheanacho, and Gambaryan’s lawyer, Mark Mordi, SAN, had adopted their processes and argued their positions regarding the bail plea.
Justice Nwite had previously ordered the remand of Gambaryan in Kuje Correctional Centre after he pleaded not guilty to money laundering charges brought against him by the EFCC.
The EFCC had accused Binance Holdings Limited, Gambaryan, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, another agent of the company, of conspiring to conceal the origins of financial proceeds from alleged unlawful activities in Nigeria, amounting to $35,400,000.
The charges included violations of Section 21(a) and punishable under Section 18(3) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, among others. Anjarwalla had escaped from lawful custody on March 22 and fled to Kenya.
Mordi, representing Gambaryan, filed an application seeking an order for his client’s release on bail pending the hearing and determination of the substantive case.
Mordi argued that the EFCC had failed to produce any credible evidence to oppose the bail application and that allegations suggesting Gambaryan was planning to escape custody, like his colleague, were false. He noted, “There is no exhibit or document displaying EFCC’s credible intelligence.”
However, the EFCC lawyer, Iheanacho, disagreed with Mordi’s arguments. He contended that granting bail to Gambaryan would be a grave risk because Gambaryan had no ties to any community in Nigeria and no competent person to stand as his surety.
Iheanacho also pointed out that Gambaryan attempted to apply for a new United States passport while in detention, knowing that his international passport was seized by Nigerian authorities. This, he argued, made Gambaryan a flight risk, likely to jump bail like his colleague.
Iheanacho insisted that the commission had provided credible evidence of Gambaryan’s intention to escape, citing the deposition in their counter affidavit from a member of the investigative team. He urged the court to dismiss the bail application or, alternatively, to return Gambaryan to EFCC custody if bail were granted.
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