The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has called on the leadership of the House of Representatives led by Rt. Hon. Speaker Tajudeen Abass, to urgently investigate the “serious allegations levelled against certain Lawmakers by Tigran Gambaryan, Head of Financial Crime Compliance at cryptocurrency firm Binance”.
The allegations claim that three Nigerian Lawmakers demanded a bribe of $150 million from Mr. Gambaryan during his detention in Nigeria.
In a statement signed by HEDA’s Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, the civil society organisation expressed deep concern over these allegations, as they undermine the integrity and credibility of the Nigerian legislative process.
Mr. Gambaryan, who spent eight months in a Nigerian detention facility on alleged corruption charges, accused three Nigerian Lawmakers of demanding a $150 million bribe from him during his detention. He named Hon. Philip Agbese, Hon. Ginger Onwusibe, and Hon. Peter Akpanke as the Lawmakers involved.
According to Suraju, such serious accusations cannot be ignored or dismissed.
“It is imperative that the House of Representatives conducts a swift, transparent, and unbiased investigation to ascertain the truth and hold any erring Lawmakers accountable if found guilty,” Suraju said.
He added, “As an organisation committed to promoting transparency, accountability, and the rule of law, HEDA believe that the House of Representatives has a duty to uphold these principles. The integrity of the entire Assembly is at stake, and failure to address these allegations adequately will cast a shadow over the legislature’s commitment to good governance and anti-corruption efforts.”
The anti-corruption group further called on the leadership of the House of Representatives to initiate an immediate investigation into the allegations made by Mr. Gambaryan and ensure that the investigation is conducted transparently and without bias.
“We are also urging the Lawmakers to make the findings of the investigation public to maintain the trust of the Nigerian people. Take appropriate legal actions against any Lawmakers found guilty of misconduct,” Suraju added.
HEDA Resource Centre further stressed that it will not hesitate to file a complaint before the corruption agencies if the Assembly fails to act within a reasonable time. The anti-corruption group reiterated its dedication to promoting transparency, the rule of law, and expressed its readiness to support a thorough investigation to uphold the principles of justice and accountability in Nigeria.
Background
On Friday, MJConcept TV News reported that Gambaryan, a former US Federal Agent and Binance employee had named three Nigerian Lawmakers who allegedly demanded a $150 million bribe from him.
Gambaryan, who was detained in February 2024 and later released in October following diplomatic intervention from the US Government, made the revelation in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday.
While Gambaryan was in Nigerian prison, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Binance Holdings Ltd., Richard Teng alleged that Nigerian authorities demanded the sum of $150million in cryptocurrency as a bribe to make the money laundering trial initiated against two of its Executives go away. This allegation was strongly denied by the Nigerian Government.
Reacting to the bribery allegation, the spokesman for the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), Zakari Mijinyawa, said in a text message to newsmen that the Nigerian Government would make its case “on the strength of the facts and evidence, in accordance with due process.”
Mijinyawa further said, “We are confident that Nigeria has a good case. Binance equally will have every opportunity under the rule of law to make its case and see justice delivered.”
However, in a shocking revelation on Friday morning, Gambaryan narrated how Members of the Nigerian House of Representatives allegedly tried to extort Binance by orchestrating a staged meeting.
He specifically named Hon. Peter Akpanke and Philip Agbese, stating that they operated under the leadership of Hon. Ginger Obinna Onwusibe. He also mentioned a third unidentified Lawmaker involved in the scheme.
He said: “The DSS was involved in the House of Representatives matter. We met with them at their office on Friday, January 5, 2024, as a prerequisite to our meeting with the House of Representatives. They alluded to the fact that we had to comply with whatever the House Members instructed us to do.
“At the House meeting, there were three Members present. Two of them were Peter Akpanke and Philip Agbese, both working under the leadership of Hon. Ginger Obinna Onwusibe. There was a third House member, but I don’t recall his name.
“They set up fake cameras and media to make the meeting appear official, but the cameras weren’t even plugged in. As you may already know, this ended with them asking for a $150 million bribe, paid in cryptocurrency into their personal wallets. A Mickey Mouse operation at its best.”
He also detailed how the Government allegedly tried to manipulate the investigation into Binance to fabricate a narrative that Binance was responsible for an alleged outflow of $26 billion from Nigeria.
He wrote, “The $26 billion figure they kept pushing publicly as some mystery money escaping Nigeria is complete BS. This information was provided in response to their request and was simply cumulative trade data for Nigerians on the platform. This money didn’t leave Nigeria—it was just people buying and selling crypto. For example, if you trade $100 a hundred times, that’s $10,000 in trade volume, but in reality, you only used $100. Again, just another example of them lying to cover up their BS investigation.
“They lied about Nadeem escaping during mosque prayers. In reality, he returned and escaped afterward. I don’t know exactly how he managed to flee. He emailed me in November, but we haven’t discussed the details of his escape.
“It’s possible he paid someone off, but I have no proof. If Belloji had simply checked his passport for a visa, he would have realized that Nadeem did not use that passport to travel to Nigeria.”