Nigeria unexpectedly dropped money laundering charges against a Binance executive who had been held in the west African country since February, bringing an end to a saga that threatened to strain diplomatic relations between Nigeria and the US.

The charges against Tigran Gambaryan, a US citizen who heads the cryptocurrency exchange’s financial crime compliance unit, were dropped at a court hearing in Nigeria’s capital Abuja two days before he was scheduled to appear on trial before a federal high court judge.

A lawyer representing Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, announced on Wednesday that the charges against Gambaryan would be dropped on grounds of ill health. The presiding judge in the case had repeatedly denied Gambaryan bail, deeming him a flight risk. Gambaryan’s family said he was in poor health in prison and was not receiving adequate medical attention, having contracted malaria, and suffering from a herniated disk.