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Nigeria seeks Interpol help to arrest Kenyan cryptocurrency boss who escaped

Nanjeem Anjarwalla is a Binance executive who had been detained in Abuja for alleged tax evasion and other charges. (Photo: File/AFP)

By Mary Wambui | Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Nanjeem Anjarwalla reportedly flew out of Abuja aboard a Middle Eastern airline, under unclear circumstances, since security agencies had confiscated his British passport.

Kenyan cryptocurrency boss Nanjeem Anjarwalla, a Binance executive who had been detained in Abuja for alleged tax evasion and other charges, escaped on Friday after security guards led him to a mosque for Ramadan prayers.

Anjarwalla reportedly flew out of Abuja aboard a Middle Eastern airline, under unclear circumstances, since security agencies had confiscated his British passport.

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The Nigerian government has sought Interpol's help in having him re-arrested.

According to Nigerian media, the Briton, who also has Kenyan citizenship, was detained in Abuja on February 26, 2024, alongside his colleague Tigran Gambaryan, an American national, moments after they arrived in the country.

Court documents show the two were arraigned before a magistrate's court in Abuja two days later and that detectives from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission were allowed to detain them for 14 days to conclude investigations.

The court further ordered their company, Binance, to provide information on Nigerian citizens trading on their platform.

"Following Binance's refusal to comply with the order, the court extended the remand of the officials for an additional 14 days to prevent them from tampering with evidence. The case was adjourned till April 14," reported Premium Times Nigeria.

Nigeria wants the two charged with failing to register their company with the Federal Revenue Service. They are facing up to four counts of evading tax, as per Section 8 of the amended Value Added Tax Act of 1993.

In one of the charges, the two are accused of offering taxable services to subscribers on their trading platform while failing to issue invoices to them, to determine and pay their value-added taxes, an offence punishable by law under Section 29 of the same Act.

Nigeria has been cracking down on suspected money launderers and terrorism financiers, some of whom it alleges are using crypto platforms for criminal activities.

It estimates that Nigerians traded more than US $21.6 billion on the platform but their identities have been concealed.

The detention of the two follows the arrest of Binance Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Changpen Zhao, who pleaded guilty and agreed to pay US $ 4.3 billion to settle money laundering charges levied by the US Department of Justice.

His criminal trial is set to commence in the US on April 30, 2024.