Tigran Gambaryan, an American personnel of Binance, has continued to insist on his allegations that three Nigerian lawmakers demanded a $150 million bribe from him to facilitate his release from detention.
TheNewsGuru recalls Gambaryan was detained in Nigeria from February to October 2024 as part of a federal investigation into alleged money laundering and economic destabilization linked to Binance’s operations in the country.
On Friday, Gambaryan claimed on X that three Nigerian lawmakers, Peter Akpanke, Philip Agbese and Ginger Obinna Onwusibe demanded $150 million bribe from him to be paid in cryptocurrency to their wallets. The Nigerian government, however, dismissed the allegations, describing it as false and unsubstantiated
Following denials by Agbese, Onwusibe and the federal government through the Minister of Information, Gambaryan in a fresh claim, insisted on Saturday that his claims are nothing but the hard truth.
He added that his time in Nigeria was not only traumatizing for him, but for his entire family.
The Binance executive said: “Many requested that I stay on and provide further commentary on the issues I posted about yesterday. Here’s the hard truth: what I shared was meant to fill in the gaps left by Wired and NPR’s reporting.
“The reality is that last year was incredibly painful for me and my family. I dedicated my life to fighting crime as a Special Agent with the United States Department of the Treasury and as a compliance profession. It was an honor to serve my country and it was a blessing that they came to my rescue and mobilized the full force of the U.S. government when I was in need.
“Being dragged through court on outrageous, baseless, and trumped-up charges didn’t just hurt me—it also brought immense pain to my family.”
I Want The Nightmare To End
Gambaryan added that he wants the entire episode to end and be able to move on with his life.
He insisted that all the things he put in public about his experience in Nigeria were factual and have been shared with the law enforcement agencies in both Nigeria and America.
“I don’t want to see my kids cry because I’m not around. I don’t want to see videos of my 75-year-old mother on television in tears. I don’t want to see my wife crying on TV. I want to put this nightmare behind me and move on.
“What I shared was factual, based on my personal experiences and conversations with those who have direct knowledge of the events I discussed. Information that was shared with both Nigerian and U.S law enforcement. So please, allow me to leave this behind and find peace.
“I am no longer in law enforcement. The responsibility of seeing this through to a logical conclusion now falls on those still serving in United States and Nigeria,”
he concluded.