A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed the fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by former Binance executive, Tigran Gambaryan, who challenged his 2024 detention by the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), with the court saying the action amounted to an abuse of court process.
The judgment was delivered on Thursday by Justice Mohammed Umar, who held that the NSA acted within its powers, noting that no court could stop security agencies from carrying out lawful investigations.
Gambaryan, a former head of financial crime compliance at Binance, filed the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/356/2024 through his lawyer, Tonye Krukrubo. He claimed his detention was unlawful and prolonged, alleging that the government was using him “as leverage to continue making demands on Binance.” He said he travelled to Nigeria on February 26, 2024, alongside colleague Nadeem Anjarwalla, to honour an invitation from the NSA and EFCC, but was detained even though he was not a director of the company. Anjarwalla later escaped custody and fled Nigeria.
Krukrubo asked the court to declare the detention periods, February 26 to 27 and March 12 to April 8, 2024, illegal, and requested an apology and financial damages.
However, lawyers representing the NSA and EFCC asked the court to dismiss the suit, describing it as a distraction from an ongoing criminal matter before another judge. The case referenced, FHC/ABJ/CR/138/2024, involves allegations of money laundering and foreign exchange violations against Binance Holdings Ltd. EFCC counsel, Olanrewaju Adeola, told the court that Gambaryan had been legally remanded and later arraigned before Justice Emeka Nwite, who denied him bail for being considered a flight risk.
In his ruling, Justice Umar stated that the court would not “interfere” with the prosecutorial powers of Nigerian authorities under the guise of enforcing fundamental rights, especially when matters relating to foreign exchange laws and money laundering are under investigation.
He added that fundamental rights are guaranteed but not absolute, and may be restricted when national security or criminal inquiries are involved. The judge also noted that criminal charges against Binance had already been filed and that affidavits before the court showed the NSA acted on intelligence reports linking the platform to alleged illicit activities. The suit was dismissed.
Ademide Adebayo
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