Binance executive jailbreaks

According to a report by the Nigerian media "Premium Times", Nadeem Anjarwalla, one of the two Binance executives, was allegedly charged with tax evasion and other crimes and has escaped from legal custody in Nigeria.

Sources said Mr Anjarwalla, 38, allegedly escaped from a guest house in Abuja on Friday, March 22. He was detained after being led by guards on duty to a nearby mosque and participating in prayers for the ongoing Ramadan fast.

The Briton, who also holds Kenyan citizenship, is believed to have left Abuja on a Middle Eastern airliner.

It is unclear how Mr Anjarwalla boarded the international flight and was detained by Nigerian authorities despite entering Nigeria on a British passport.

Authorities are also said to be working to unravel his intended destination so he can be returned to custody.

An immigration official revealed that Binance executives fled Nigeria using Kenyan passports. But officials noted they were investigating how he obtained the passport because he had only his British passport and no other travel documents on him when he was detained.

The two officials were detained in a luxury hotel and given privileges such as use of a telephone, according to another person familiar with the matter. Some believe Anjavalali used these privileges to stage an escape.

Zakari Mijinyawa, director of strategic communications at the Office of the National Security Adviser, said he would inquire and respond when contacted on Sunday night about the Binance executive's escape from custody. However, so far, he has not taken any action.

Mr. Anjarwalla, Binance’s regional manager for Africa, and Tigran Gambaryan, an American citizen responsible for the cryptocurrency trading platform’s financial crime compliance, were detained upon arrival in Nigeria on February 26, 2024.

The Abuja Magistrate Court filed criminal charges against the two executives. On February 28, 2024, the court approved the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to remand the two men in custody for 14 days. The court also ordered Binance to provide the Nigerian government with data/information on Nigerians trading on its platform.

The court extended the officers' remand by 14 days after Binance refused to comply with the order to prevent them from tampering with evidence. The court subsequently adjourned the case to April 4, 2024.

Also on March 22, the Nigerian government filed a complaint at the Federal High Court in Abuja, slamming another four-count charge against Binance Holdings Limited, Mr. Anjarwalla and Mr. Gambaryan, alleging that they had Providing services to Users without registering with the Federal Inland Revenue Authority for the purpose of paying all relevant taxes administered by the Authority is in contravention of Section 8 of the Value Added Tax Act 1993 (as amended) and is punishable by law.

The defendant is also accused of providing taxable services to subscribers on its trading platform without invoicing the subscribers to determine and pay VAT, in so doing contrary to Section 29 of the Value Added Tax Act 1993 (as amended) Article, and shall be punished.

The third count in the complaint accuses the three defendants of providing services to users on its Binance exchange platform for the purchase and sale of cryptocurrencies and the remittance and transfer of these assets, without deducting any income generated by their operations. Necessary VAT, thereby committing an offense contrary to Section 40 of the Federal Inland Revenue Service Establishment Act, 2007 (as amended) and shall be punishable.

The final charge is that the defendants were punished for allegedly aiding and abetting users on the Binance exchange platform to unlawfully refuse to pay taxes or neglect to pay taxes, and in doing so committed violations of the Corporate Income Tax Act The offenses specified in Article 94 of (as amended) shall be punishable.

Over the past three months, the Nigerian government has been cracking down on suspected money launderers and terrorist financiers, some of whom are allegedly using the Binance platform to conduct criminal activities.

The Nigerian government said that the identity of Nigerians was concealed by Binance and the transaction value exceeded $21.6 billion.

The government also claims that its investigation revealed that unscrupulous elements are using Binance to conduct money laundering, terrorist financing, currency speculation and market manipulation, distorting the Nigerian economy and weakening the naira against other currencies.

The detention of Binance Nigeria officials comes months after the cryptocurrency trading platform pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $4.3 billion to resolve criminal money laundering charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice .

Binance founder and CEO Zhao, also known as CZ, pleaded guilty and agreed to resign. A U.S. court has postponed his criminal trial to April 30.

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