A complete of 18 state attorneys basic, together with New York Lawyer Normal Leticia James, urged President Joe Biden to declare Binance compliance officer Tigran Gambaryan a hostage of the Nigerian authorities in a letter on Friday. Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen, can also be a former legislation enforcement officer, having served as a Particular Agent with the Inside Income Service (IRS).
Gambaryan has been detained in Nigeria since February 2024. The attorneys basic “expressed grave concern for the well being and well-being” of Gambaryan, who’s being held “unlawfully,” beneath “doubtlessly life-threatening circumstances,” the letter said.
Designating Gambaryan as a hostage beneath the Robert Levinson Hostage Restoration and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act would unlock assets that might expedite the method of his restoration. Gambaryan’s return shall be overseen by the Hostage Restoration Fusion Cell, which assesses and tracks unlawful detainment of U.S. nationals.
The attorneys basic consider that declaring Gambaryan a hostage would additionally “apply extra diplomatic stress to make sure his quick launch.”
The principle concern of the attorneys basic is the deteriorating well being of Gambaryan. In response to the letter, Gambaryan’s life is in “quick hazard.” Gambaryan has been denied therapy for malaria and pneumonia throughout his imprisonment, and his “untreated herniated disc has left him motionless.”
The attorneys basic consider that except there may be swift motion, Gambaryan’s detention might flip right into a “tragedy.”
Arrested with out trigger
The attorneys basic declare that Gambaryan was illegally detained with out correct trigger in order that he might be used as leverage within the Nigerian authorities’s dispute with Binance. The letter said:
“This blatant misuse of energy is nothing lower than extortion, and it have to be met with the total weight of the U.S. Authorities’s affect, notably given America’s monetary and political help of the present political regime in Nigeria.”
Nigerian officers invited Gambaryan earlier this 12 months to handle allegations about Binance’s involvement in manipulating the Nigerian foreign money. Nevertheless, upon his arrival, Gambaryan was arrested with out trigger, his passport was confiscated and he was held with out formal prices.
The attorneys basic accused Nigerian authorities of violating Gambaryan’s fundamental rights, together with no entry to medical and dietary wants. Gambaryan has spent months in Kuje Jail, which is understood for housing violent extremists from Boko Haram and ISIS.
The letter comes the identical day that the Nigerian authorities failed to provide Gambaryan at a scheduled court docket continuing. In response to a press launch, the Nigerian authorities was both unable to unwilling to elucidate to the decide the place Gambaryan was, aside from stating that he was in custody.
