Alleged corruption: Disregard falsehood Peddled by Binance chief against Nigerian Government Officials – FG
The federal government, through the Ministry of Information and Orientation Agency, has asked Nigerians to disregard a report by the head of financial crime of crypto firm Binance, Tigran Gambaryan, who claimed three Nigerian lawmakers who allegedly demanded a $150 million bribe from him.
Gambaryan, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), claimed that three federal lawmakers, Peter Akpanke, Philip Agbese and Ginger Obinna Onwusibe.
The Informant247 reports that the Nigerian government detained Gambaryan and another Binance official after accusing their firm of money laundering and encouraging criminality in Nigeria.
He was later released after the government dropped the charges against him following the intervention of the US government.
The Binance chief, during his detention, mentioned that some lawmakers demanded bribes from him to stave off his arrest and prosecution.
In his post, Mr Gambaryan provided details of the bribe demand, including the date it occurred and the conditions under which it was demanded.
“The DSS was involved in the House of Representatives matter. We met with them at their office on Friday, January 5, 2024, as a prerequisite to our meeting with the House of Representatives. They alluded to the fact that we had to comply with whatever the House members instructed us to do.
“At the House meeting, there were three members present. Two of them were Peter Akpanke and Philip Agbese, both working under the leadership of Ginger Obinna Onwusibe. There was a third House member, but I don’t recall his name. They set up fake cameras and media to make the meeting appear official, but the cameras weren’t even plugged in. As you may already know, this ended with them asking for a $150 million bribe, paid in cryptocurrency into their personal wallets. A Mickey Mouse operation at its best.”
However, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, while denying the claim, noted that the outrageous allegations, misinformation, and defamatory statements being disseminated by Tigran Gambaryan, an American personnel of Binance, were totally false.
The statement reads, “While the Federal Government of Nigeria is reluctant to engage Mr Gambaryan due to the high-level diplomatic intervention that resolved his case, we are compelled to set the record straight to prevent his falsehoods from gaining traction.
“The first visit of Mr Gambaryan and his colleagues to Nigeria was at their own discretion, and the Government was not officially involved. However, when the Government’s attention was drawn to an alleged bribery demand during that trip, an investigation was immediately launched despite there being no formal complaint from anyone.
“Mr Gambaryan’s second visit to Nigeria was part of a wider probe into the criminal manipulation of the Nigerian currency through peer-to-peer platforms like Binance, but investigators were frustrated by the tactics deployed by Gambaryan and his team.
“Mr Gambaryan was released by the Nigerian government in October 2024 on humanitarian grounds and following a high-level diplomatic intervention that ended with tangible benefits for Nigeria. The government rejected Binance’s offer of a $5 million down payment in exchange for Mr Gambaryan’s freedom in favour of a more beneficial settlement with the American government.
“We categorically deny the retaliatory claims made by Mr Gambaryan against Nigerian officials involved in his case, and we urge the public to disregard these false accusations in their entirety.
“It is essential to note that Mr Gambaryan’s allegations are not only unsubstantiated but also lack credibility, given his apparent motive to discredit and intimidate those who ensured he faced justice.
“However, we are confident that both the Nigerian and American judicial systems will provide Mr Gambaryan with a fair opportunity to substantiate his claims in court. Until then, we advise the public to exercise caution and not be swayed by Mr Gambaryan’s unfounded and malicious claims.”
