The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has once again brought Binance to court on four separate charges related to alleged tax evasion.
Ayodele Omotilewa, Binance’s representative in Nigeria,
appeared before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja on
Friday.
Omotilewa entered a plea of not guilty to the four charges.
In the revised accusation submitted on June 14, Binance
Holdings Limited stands as the exclusive entity implicated in the legal
proceedings.
Following the appeal made by the Binance representative,
Moses Ideho, legal counsel for the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS),
requested a date for the commencement of the trial. In response, the presiding
judge set October 11th as the official trial date.
In the recent months, Tigran Gambaryan, Binance’s director
of financial crime compliance, has been involved in a legal proceeding in
Nigeria concerning accusations of tax evasion and money laundering.
On June 14, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS)
withdrew the tax allegations against Gambaryan.
The Abuja Federal High Court released Gambaryan after the
Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) confirmed Omotilewa’s appointment as the
company’s representative.
Nevertheless, the EFCC has not yet withdrawn its accusations
against Binance and its executives.
The anti-corruption agency has filed a lawsuit against
Binance Holdings Limited, Gambaryan, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, Binance’s regional
manager for Africa, on suspicion of money laundering.
Gambaryan and Anjarwalla were taken into custody by Nigerian
authorities on February 28.
Nevertheless, Anjarwalla managed to escape from the custody
of the office of the national security adviser (ONSA), leaving Gambaryan solely
responsible for facing the charges.
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