IV 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1348 

Urging the Government of Nigeria to immediately release Tigran Gambaryan 

from imprisonment. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 10, 2024 

Mr. MCCORMICK (for himself and Mr. HILL) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Urging the Government of Nigeria to immediately release 

Tigran Gambaryan from imprisonment. 

Whereas Tigran Gambaryan is a citizen of the United States, 

a resident of Georgia, and a former Federal agent; 

Whereas Tigran Gambaryan worked for the Internal Revenue 

Service for over 10 years, investigating highly public 

crimes and seizing over $4,000,000,000 in illicit funds on 

behalf of the United States Government; 

Whereas Tigran Gambaryan, on the date of his detainment, 

was employed by Binance Holdings Limited (Binance) as 

the Head of Financial Crime Compliance; 

Whereas, on February 26, 2024, Tigran Gambaryan traveled 

to the Federal Republic of Nigeria at the invitation of the 


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•HRES 1348 IH 

Nigerian Government for high-level meetings regarding 

Binance’s compliance issues with the country; 

Whereas the meetings became increasingly hostile, and 

Tigran Gambaryan was escorted by armed guards to his 

hotel room where he was forced to pack his belongings 

and surrender his passport; 

Whereas Tigran Gambaryan was then moved to a Nigerian 

Government-owned house, known as the ‘‘Guest House’’ 

where he was detained for 5 days without the ability to 

inform his family, company, attorneys, or the Department of State of his situation; 

Whereas, on March 12, 2024, the court order that had been 

obtained by the Nigerian authorities to detain Tigran 

Gambaryan for 14 days had expired; 

Whereas, on March 20, 2024, the Chief Court 1 of the Magistrate Court of the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja, Nigeria) stated that ‘‘the remand order has not been extended’’, despite adjourning to April 5, 2024, for a ruling; 

Whereas, from March 12, 2024, to April 5, 2024, there was 

no Nigerian legal basis for the continued detention of 

Tigran Gambaryan; 

Whereas, on April 5, 2024, Tigran Gambaryan was charged 

with several crimes, including tax evasion and money 

laundering, along with his employer, Binance, and was 

subsequently transferred to the notorious Kuje Prison, 

which is known for its harsh conditions and also holds 

members of the terrorist group Boko Haram; 

Whereas the Department of State released a 2023 report on 

the human rights situation, including prison conditions, 

in Nigeria, that highlighted credible reports of significant 


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•HRES 1348 IH 

human rights abuses, including the ‘‘inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by the government; harsh 

and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest or 

detention; serious problems with the independence of the 

judiciary’’; 

Whereas, on May 14, 2024, Tigran was denied bail after 

lengthy delays and stalling tactics by the prosecution; 

Whereas, during Tigran’s detainment, he has been unable to 

speak privately with his attorneys, family, or the embassy 

staff of the United States; 

Whereas the Government of Nigeria is wrongfully detaining 

Tigran Gambaryan, in accordance with the criteria described in section 302(a) of the Robert Levinson Hostage 

Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act (22 

U.S.C. 1741(a)), in order to extort Binance; 

Whereas the Nigerian Information Minister Mohammed Idris 

was quoted in a telephone interview as saying, ‘‘they 

[Binance] have committed a crime’’; 

Whereas the Government of Nigeria has admitted openly in 

court that Tigran is being tried in lieu of pursuing legal 

action against his employer; 

Whereas, on April 24, the Nigerian Government pleaded with 

the judge to deny bail, stating, ‘‘The 1st defendant 

(Binance) is operating virtually. The only thing we have 

to hold on to is this defendant (Tigran). So, we pray, My 

Lord, to refuse bail to the defendant’’; 

Whereas Tigran Gambaryan’s health has been declining during his detention in Kuje Prison; 

Whereas repeated requests for doctor visits have been slow to 

be fulfilled, and when a doctor did visit, Tigran was reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:59 Jul 11, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR1348.IH HR1348

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•HRES 1348 IH 

ferred to a specialist rather than be treated by that doctor; 

Whereas, on May 22, 2024, Tigran was absent from a court 

hearing and neither the court, the prosecutors, nor his 

defense team were aware of his whereabouts or conditions; 

Whereas the court received no response from the prison and 

was forced to postpone his hearing; 

Whereas, on May 23, 2024, Tigran appeared in court for a 

hearing and was slumped over in his chair and when 

called to step forward, Tigran could not stand on his own 

and collapsed to the floor; 

Whereas Tigran tested positive for malaria and has been unable to receive proper treatment as his requests for hospital treatment were delayed despite a May 23, 2024, 

order by the judge that he be released from Kuje Prison 

and admitted to a hospital for proper medical care; 

Whereas, on June 4, 2024, Tigran was transferred to a private hospital for 5 hours to receive treatment and was 

immediately returned to Kuje Prison; 

Whereas Tigran’s case at the Federal Inland Revenue Service 

was closed and all tax-related charges were dropped; 

Whereas the Court determined that Gambaryan was not a 

representative of Binance and all orders requiring service 

of court processes be nullified; 

Whereas, as of June 14, 2024, Tigran remains the subject 

of charges filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission despite concerns for his health 

and requests to release him on humanitarian grounds; 


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•HRES 1348 IH 

Whereas a congressional delegation visited Tigran on June 

20, 2024, and remains concerned about his treatment; 

Whereas, on June 21, 2024, Tigran’s lawyer informed the 

court that the Turkish Hospital where Tigran was treated refused to obey the court order to release Tigran’s 

medical report and the judge again directed that Tigran’s 

medical record be released; 

Whereas Tigran’s detainment has been ongoing since February of 2024, the court typically takes a recess from 

mid-July to September; and 

Whereas if Tigran’s case is not resolved by mid-July, he may 

remain in detention for an even longer undue period of 

time: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) urges the Government of Nigeria to imme3 diately release Tigran Gambaryan from imprison4 ment; 

5 (2) urges the United States Government to uti6 lize all resources available to secure the release of 

7 Tigran Gambaryan, and to raise the case of Tigran 

8 and press for his immediate release in all inter9 actions with the Government of Nigeria; 

10 (3) urges the United States Government to for11 mally declare Tigran Gambaryan as a ‘‘U.S. citizen 

12 wrongfully detained by a foreign government’’ pursu13 ant to section 302(a) of the Robert Levinson Hos14 tage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability 

15 Act (22 U.S.C. 1741(a)); 


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•HRES 1348 IH 

1 (4) urges the Government of Nigeria to provide 

2 full, unfettered, and consistent consular access, in 

3 accordance with its international obligations, to 

4 Tigran Gambaryan while he remains in detention; 

5 (5) urges the Government of Nigeria to provide 

6 unrestricted medical access to Tigran Gambaryan 

7 and ensure he is swiftly provided all medical care, 

8 including prescriptions and antimalarials, as needed; 

9 (6) calls on the Government of Nigeria to pro10 vide Tigran Gambaryan and all other political pris11 oners their constitutionally afforded due process 

12 rights and universally recognized human rights; and 

13 (7) expresses sympathy for and solidarity with 

14 Tigran Gambaryan’s wife, Yuki Gambaryan, his en15 tire family, and all other citizens of the United 

16 States and lawful permanent residents wrongfully 

17 detained abroad for the personal hardship experi18 enced as a result of the arbitrary and baseless arrest 

19 and detention of their loved ones. 

Æ 


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