Detained Binance Executive Not Sick, Says NCoS

The Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS) has said that contrary to insinuations, the Binance executive in its custody, Tigran Gambaryan, was not sick as he is “safe and healthy”.

Spokesperson of the Service, Umar Abubakar, stated this Thursday at the media briefing by the Strategic Communications Interagency Policy Committee (SCIPC) under the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), held at the Nigeria Police Force headquarters in Abuja.

The family of Gambaryan, the head of crypto exchange Binance, told the Federal High Court Abuja on Friday, June 28, that the suspect’s health was deteriorating in jail.

Gambaryan had been is being detained in Kuje prison, Abuja, and facing trial for money laundering.

The NCoS spokesperson said Gambaryan “is not under any serious health condition” contrary to what was said at the court and reported in some sections of the media.

He said: “I want to say that our responsibility is unique as a security agency, because we keep those who are in conflict with the law.

“We don’t just dwell only on their information and rehabilitation, but we have a robust health care system that is evident to all. If you check the morbidity rates and the mortality rates in our custodial centers, I would say it’s 0.1 per cent.

“In 2020, during COVID-19, we recorded 0% of COVID patients in our custodial centers. So if any inmate falls ill within our custodial center, we have qualified medical personnel to attend to them.

“And just like other open hospitals, where we feel that the condition cannot be managed within our facility, they are referred to an appropriate hospital where they will continue their treatment.

“So for Binance executive, he is not under any serious health condition. He is fine with us, and he will continue to be fine with us.”