Office of the national security adviser NSA has announced the escape of an executive of cryptocurrency platform Binance, Nadeem Anjarwalla.
Anjarwalla is a suspect of the Federal Government’s ongoing probe into Binance activities in Nigeria,East said to have escaped from custody on Friday,
the NSA office in a statement on Monday by its spokesman Zakari Mijinyawa said:“The Office of the National Security Adviser confirms that Nadeem Anjarwalla, a suspect in the ongoing criminal probe into the activities of Binance in Nigeria has escaped from lawful custody on Friday, 22 March 2024,”
Upon receiving the report, the Office of the NSA took immediate steps, in conjunction with relevant security agencies, MDAs, as well as the international community, to apprehend the suspect.
“Preliminary investigation shows that Mr Anjarwalla fled Nigeria using a smuggled passport,” it said.
“The personnel responsible for the custody of the suspect have been arrested, and a thorough investigation is ongoing to unravel the circumstances that led to his escape from lawful detention.”
Until his escape, Anjarwalla, who holds British and Kenyan citizenship and serves as Binance’s Africa Regional Manager, was facing trial in Nigerian courts.
The suspect escaped while under a 14-day remand order by a court. He was scheduled to appear before it again on April 4, 2024.
His escape is the latest twist in the ongoing brawl between Nigerian authorities and the cryptocurrency platform. Anjarwalla was one of the Binance chiefs arrested in the wake of the tussle.
The Federal Government had in recent months heightened its crackdown on suspected money launderers and currency speculators. A month ago, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said over $26bn was channelled through Binance without a trace.
“In the last one year,” CBN governor Yemi Cardoso said, “more than $26 billion have been funnelled through Binance without trace”.
Nigeria’s crackdown on Binance started months after the platform pleaded guilty to money laundering charges against it by the US Department of Justice.
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