Nigerians are scoffing and having fun on social media over what they unbelievable story of how a Binance Executive of Binance, Nadeem Anjarwalla, escaped from detention, walked to an airport and flew out of the country.
Some of the angry scoffs and comic strip are not worth repeating, but the Office of the National Security Adviser, headed by Mr. Nuhu Ribadu, is livid at the national and international embarrassment the federal government has been subjected to. It has opened discussions with the Interpol to track and bring back the fugitive.
Many Nigerians do not think anything will come out of any effort to recapture Nadeem, a British citizen of Kenyan descent, but the ONSA appears undeterred
In a statement on Monday, ONSA’s Head of Strategic Communication, Zakari U. Mijinyawa, said the agency, in conjunction with relevant security agencies, MDAs, as well as the international community, are working to apprehend the suspect.
“The personnel responsible for the custody of the suspect have been arrested, and a thorough investigation is ongoing to unravel the circumstances that led to his escape from lawful detention.”
Recall that the Federal Government of Nigeria, like other governments around the world, has been investigating money laundering and terrorism financing transactions perpetrated on the Binance currency exchange platform.
Until his escape, Nadeem Anjarwalla, who holds British and Kenyan nationalities and serving as Binance’s Africa regional manager, was being tried by Nigerian courts.
The suspect escaped while under a 14-day remand order by a court in Nigeria. He was scheduled to appear before the court again on 4 April 2024.
“We urge the Nigerian public and the international community to provide whatever information they have that can assist law enforcement agencies to apprehend the suspect,” the ONSA added.
The Nigerian media reports that Anjarwalla, on Friday, escaped from the Abuja guest house where he and his colleague were being held.
He was said to have escaped after some guards on duty escorted him to a nearby mosque for prayers.
He was suspected to have departed Abuja via a Middle East airline.
How Anjarwalla boarded an international flight despite his British passport, which he used to enter Nigeria, being held by Nigerian authorities remains unclear.
Premium Times reports that authorities are also working to unravel his intended destination to get him back into custody.
An Immigration official said the Binance executive fled Nigeria on a Kenyan passport.
The official disclosed that the authorities are working on unravelling how he obtained the passport, given the fact that he had no other travel document (apart from the British passport) on him when he was arrested.
According to another insider, the two officials were detained in a “pleasant guest house” and granted numerous privileges, such as access to telephones. Anjarwalla is suspected to have taken advantage of this opportunity to plan his escape.,