EFCC Adjourns BINANCE EXECUTIVE’S BAIL APPLICATION
By Katherine Abayomi
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in a statement says it is prosecuting Gambaryan alongside Binance Holdings Ltd and Nadeem Anjarwalla (currently at large) on five count charges bordering on alleged tax evasion, currency speculation, and money laundering to the tune of $34,400,000 (Thirty -four million, four hundred thousand United states dollars), this was stated in a press release by EFCC.
The Federal High Court sitting in Maitama Abuja presided by Justice Emeka Nwite on Tuesday, April 23, 2024 adjourned the hearing of the case.
However the court which held on Thursday, April 18, 2024, adjourned till Tuesday for prosecution counsel Mr. Ekele Eheanacho responded to the bail application filed by defence counsel Mark Mordi (SAN) at the proceedings, Mordi argued that the court had the power to grant bill to the defendant and impose conditions to ensure his presence in court this he filed on April 4, 2024, supported by a 17- paragraph affidavit in under section 157 and 52 of ACJA, still Eheanacho opposed the bail application on grounds that defendant is a flight risk.
That defendant had attempted to obtain a new passport which he claimed was stolen, since his colleague escaped from custody, “We can’t risk granting him bail, especially since his not attached to any community in Nigeria “, Eheanacho said.
He further stated that the fact that the passport of the defendant has been with the complainant doesn’t guarantee him remaining in Nigeria for the defendant is both American and an Armenian citizen by birth, he further urged the court to refuse the application and remand him in EFCC custody to ensure his safety and prevent potential flight risk.
Mordi argued that the defendant posed no flight risk and prosecution was not certain that the defendant had an Armenian passport and also there was no Armenian Embassy in Nigeria that issued or prints passports.
The court adjourned the matter till May 17, 2024, for ruling on the bail application after listening to the submissions.
