An executive of Binance Holdings Limited, Tigran Gambaryan, has been remanded to Kuje Correctional Centre pending the determination of his bail application. This is coming after his arraignment before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Justice Emeka Nwite gave the order after he pleaded not guilty to the five-count charges, including money laundering, brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday.
The EFCC had accused Binance, Gambaryan, and fleeing Nadeem Anjarwalla of concealing the source of the $35,400,000 generated as revenue by Binance in Nigeria, knowing that the funds constituted proceeds of unlawful activity. Binance Holdings Limited and Tigran Gambaryan’s arraignment was stalled on April 4 following an objection from Gambaryan’s counsel, Mark Mordi, SAN, who had insisted that his client could not be arraigned following the failure of the EFCC to perform service on Binance Holdings Limited.
Ruling on the matter, Justice Nwite said the service on Gambaryan on behalf of the company was proper.
He held that Section 478 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act stipulates that service must be effected on a chief agent of a company within the jurisdiction.
Justice Nwite added that all the prosecution needed was to establish that the person being served was an agent of Binance.
“The court should proceed with the arraignment of the defendants,” the judge held.
He also noted that in an affidavit deposed to by Gambaryan’s lawyer, he claimed his client and Anjarwalla travelled to Nigeria to attend a meeting with Nigerian government officials on behalf of Binance.
The charges were then read to Gambaryan, but he pleaded not guilty for himself and Binance.
The prosecution counsel requested a date for the commencement of the trial.
But Gambaryan’s lawyer, Mark Mordi, pleaded with the court to grant his client’s bail application.
“I am happy to go to trial. But there is a question of the second defendant’s custody. He has been in custody for 40 days. This is a foreign national. There’s nothing more significant than what he is going after here. We are created by God, and the greatest thing anyone can have is freedom,” Mordi appealed on behalf of his client.
However, Ekele Iheanacho Esq, counsel to the EFCC, stated that “the proper place for post-arraignment is a correctional centre. We have Nigerians convicted in the US. His detention was proper.
Mordi, however, urged the court to consider the alternative of keeping his client in the EFCC’s custody.
The judge subsequently adjourned the matter to April 18 for bail application and May 2 for commencement of trial.
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