A
group
of
108
former
federal
prosecutors
and
agents
have
signed
a
public
letter
to
U.S.
Secretary
of
State
Antony
Blinken
urging
the
State
Department
to
“step
up”
its
efforts
to
secure
Binance
compliance
head
Tigran
Gambaryan’s
release
from
a
Nigerian
prison,
Axios
reported
Thursday
evening.
The
letter,
reportedly
spearheaded
by
investor
and
Coinbase
board
member
Katie
Haun
– a
former
federal
prosecutor
– called
the
government’s
minimal
efforts
to
intervene
on
Gambaryan’s
behalf
“wholly
lacking,”
stressing
that
the
“consequences
of
further
inaction
are
potentially
dire.”
Gambaryan,
a
former
Internal
Revenue
Service
(IRS)
agent
and
Binance’s
current
head
of
financial
crime
compliance,
was
arrested
in
Nigeria
in
February
and,
a
month
later,
charged
with
money
laundering
and
tax
evasion
– essentially
as
a
scapegoat
for
his
employer,
which
Nigerian
officials
have
accused
of
tanking
the
value
of
the
naira.
Gambaryan
has
pleaded
not
guilty
to
all
charges.
Bail
hearings
and
other
court
proceedings
have
repeatedly
been
pushed
back.
A
State
Department
spokesperson
told
CoinDesk
earlier
this
year
that
the
department
was
“aware
of
reports”
of
Gambaryan’s
detention,
while
a
White
House
spokesperson
later
referred
CoinDesk
back
to
the
State
Department.
During
court
proceedings
last
month,
Gambaryan
collapsed.
A
spokesperson
for
the
family
told
CoinDesk
that
Gambaryan
is
suspected
of
having
malaria
and
a
severe
throat
infection,
presumably
picked
up
in
the
prison
where
he
is
being
held.
Despite
a
court
order
to
move
him
to
a
hospital
from
Kuje
prison
– known
to
hold
violent
criminals
and
terrorists,
including
members
of
the
Islamist
jihadist
group
Boko
Haram
– Nigerian
officials
have
reportedly
refused
to
transfer
him.
In
their
letter
to
Sec.
Blinken,
Haun
and
the
other
signers
call
Gambaryan’s
captivity
“not
only
unjust
but
inhumane,”
adding
that,
in
addition
to
not
receiving
adequate
medical
care,
he
has
not
been
allowed
to
speak
with
his
lawyers
or
family.
“We
implore
you
to
leverage
the
full
power
of
U.S.
diplomacy
to
do
the
just
thing
by
demanding
and
securing
Tigran’s
immediate
release
back
to
his
family
and
the
country
he
has
so
honorably
served,”
the
authors
of
the
letter
wrote.
Earlier
this
week,
16
members
of
Congress
wrote
a
similar
letter
to
U.S.
President
Joe
Biden,
Sec.
Blinken
and
diplomat
Roger
Carstens,
the
State
Department’s
special
envoy
for
hostage
affairs.
The
letter
called
Gambaryan’s
detainment
“deeply
disturbing”
and
urged
that
his
case
be
transferred
to
Carstens’
office
to
be
treated
as
a
hostage
situation.
“We
fear
for
his
life,”
they
said.
“Immediate
action
is
essential
to
ensure
his
safety
and
preserve
his
life.
We
must
act
swiftly
before
it
is
too
late.”
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