ABUJA, March 26 — The Nigerian government said Monday that it has taken immediate steps to re-arrest Nadeem Anjarwalla, a suspect in Nigeria’s ongoing criminal probe into the activities of Binance, a cryptocurrency exchange company, who has allegedly fled the country. Anjarwalla, identified as Binance’s Africa regional manager, allegedly escaped from lawful custody in Nigeria on Friday while on a 14-day remand order by a court, the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) said in a statement in the capital of Abuja. The Nigerian government has been investigating money laundering and terrorism financing transactions, allegedly perpetrated on the Binance currency exchange platform since last month.
Anjarwalla and Tigran Gambayan, identified as Binance’s head of financial crime compliance, had been detained by Nigerian authorities since Feb. 28, in the wake of a broader clampdown on crypto platforms in the West African country. A high court in Abuja had ordered Binance to provide comprehensive data or information on all persons from Nigeria trading on its platform. Anjarwalla, who holds British and Kenyan passports, was scheduled to appear before the court again on April 4. The Binance executive allegedly fled Nigeria using a smuggled passport, the ONSA statement said, citing a preliminary investigation. It said the personnel responsible for the fleeing of Anjarwalla had been arrested as an ongoing investigation had unraveled the circumstances behind his escape. Local security agencies are working with the international police for an international arrest warrant on the suspect, it added.
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