Biden Urged to Act as Lawmakers Fear for the Life of Detained Binance Exec in Nigeria

A group of U.S. lawmakers asked President Joe Biden to bring back Tigran Gambaryan, the Binance executive who has been detained in Nigeria for almost three months.

Michael McCaul (R-Texas), the House Foreign Affairs Committee chair, along with 11 other leaders, sent a letter to Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger D. Carstens.

In the letter, they urged the president to treat Gambaryan’s case as a hostage situation and bring him back to the U.S. Gambaryan is a U.S. citizen and Binance’s head of compliance.

“We fear for his life. Immediate action is essential to ensure his safety and preserve his life. We must act swiftly before it is too late,” they said.

Gambaryan and another company executive, Nadeem Anjarwalla, were detained by Nigerian officials after they were invited by the country to resolve a dispute with the crypto exchange. Anjarwalla managed to escape, but Gambaryan has been in Nigeria for almost three months.

The detained exec’s family has said that he is ill and may have malaria. He had collapsed in a Nigerian court on May 24.

Binance and Gambaryan are facing money laundering and tax evasion charges in Nigeria.