The United States House Foreign Affairs Committee has passed a fresh legislative measure demanding the release of Tigran Gambaryan, a Binance Executive detained in Nigeria for the past 7 months.
The committee raised concerns over his health, claiming that the US citizen needs urgent medical treatment and should be immediately released.
The recent legislative measure by the House Committee is the latest development in the growing list of US-backed authorities mounting pressure on the Nigerian state to release Tigran Gambaryan.
The legislative measure was introduced by two Republican Reps Rich McCormick and French Hill in July. This measure was then passed by a voice note during a hearing on Tuesday.
The resolution by the two republican congressmen urged the Nigerian Government to release the detained Binance Executive and grant him access to unrestricted medical care.
The resolution also urged the U.S. State Department to employ all available assets to secure the release of Gambaryan and pronounce his detention as unlawful McCormick stated during the hearing on Tuesday.
“Tigran is suffering, not to mention his wife and two young children waiting at home for his return,” McCormick said.
“This is no way for an American citizen to be treated by custody of a foreign government, especially one that’s supposed to be our ally and partner in the region,” McCormick added.
Rep. Gregory Meeks, top Democrat of the House Foreign Affairs Committee reacted to the issue stating that the US government has earlier acted on the issue and he is disappointed that the Nigerian government has not acted on the issue.
“I know that the State Department is fully engaged in Mr. Gambaryan’s case and they are weighing the facts according to their process,” Meeks said in support of the resolution. “But regardless of how that process plays out, we must continue to press the Nigerian government.”
Binance vs Nigeria
In February, Tigran Gambaryan, a former IRS agent in the United States and Binance’s Head of Financial Crime Compliance was detained alongside his colleague Nardeem Anjarwalla upon their arrival to Nigeria to honor an invitation by the Nigerian government.
Nardeem Anjarwalla managed to escape custody using a second passport while Tigran Gambaryan is still stuck in captivity.
Nigeria’s case against Binance includes charges of money laundering and tax evasion and both parties have been in court since the start of the dispute in February.
Family members of Tigran Gambaryan and US authorities have repeatedly called for the release of Tigran from Nigerian detention citing his deteriorating health but this has been waived off by the Nigerian government.
Nigeria is not the only country with a standing dispute with Binance. Binance has been accused by various countries of charges bordering on money laundering and poor compliance with financial regulatory frameworks.
Binance has had disputes with India, Brazil, Nigeria, and even the United States. The crypto exchange remains the largest in the world by market share and transaction volume.
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