Olusegun Ariyo
Binance executive, Tigran Gambaryan, has again insisted that the $150m bribery allegation he made against three Nigerian lawmakers is factual.
On Friday, Gambaryan had named members of the House of Representatives Philip Agbese, Ginger Onwusibe and Peter Akpanke, as the lawmakers who demanded a $150m bribe from him
The bribe was allegedly to forestall his arrest and prosecution over money laundering allegations.
This claim has since been dismissed by the lawmakers and the Federal Government.
Despite these denials, Gambaryan took to his X on Saturday, to state that his claim was factual.
“What I shared was factual, based on my personal experiences and conversations with those who have direct knowledge of the events I discussed; information that was shared with both Nigerian and US law enforcement.
“So please, allow me to leave this behind and find peace,” he wrote.
Gambaryan added: “I am no longer in law enforcement. The responsibility of seeing this through to a logical conclusion now falls on those still serving in the United States and Nigeria.
“Many requested that I stay on and provide further commentary on the issues I posted about yesterday (Friday). Here’s the hard truth: what I shared was meant to fill in the gaps left by Wired and NPR’s reporting.
“The reality is that last year was incredibly painful for me and my family. I dedicated my life to fighting crime as a Special Agent with the United States Department of the Treasury and as a compliance professional. It was an honour to serve my country and it was a blessing that they came to my rescue and mobilised the full force of the US Government when I was in need.
“Being dragged through court on outrageous, baseless, and trumped-up charges didn’t just hurt me, it also brought immense pain to my family.
“I don’t want to see my kids cry because I’m not around. I don’t want to see videos of my 75-year-old mother on television in tears. I don’t want to see my wife crying on TV. I want to put this nightmare behind me and move on.”
