Disregard, disrespect for judiciary – AG on US-indicted Mohameds’ failure to pay court costs

Attorney General (AG) and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall, on Tuesday related that his office and the Home Affairs Minister are still owed court costs from the US-indicted father-son duo Azruddin and Nazar Mohamed, who were required to pay the costs after they lost their Court of Appeal (CoA) case to halt their extradition to the US, where they are wanted on 11 criminal charges.
The AG also defended recent remarks by the US Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot, who recently reaffirmed the US’s firm stance in its pursuit of extradition of the Mohameds and emphasised that the US “firmly believes that they’re guilty of the crimes that they’re being indicted for.”

Speaking on his weekly programme “Issues in the News”, Nandlall noted that he wrote the Mohamed’s attorney, Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, on March 23, enquiring about payment of the costs from their clients COA lost, but has not heard from the attorney or the Mohameds. Nandlall described the situation as a sign of irreverence to the court.
“This again constitutes another demonstration of disregard and disrespect for our judiciary, our judges, and our orders of court. Let me make it clear that lawyers request costs that are awarded to the clients or to them on a regular basis. I see persons pushing out rhetoric to say that somebody is going after these people. When court orders are made against you, you must obey them. That is how the system works. If not, enforcement proceedings will flow, and I said that in the letter,” Nandlall noted.
“I wrote Senior Counsel Mr Roysdale Forde by letter dated 23rd of March 2026 requesting costs. I am yet to receive a response.”
In their ruling on March 17, the COA awarded costs of $1.1 million each to the AG and the home affairs Minister after dismissing the case brought by the Mohameds as “wholly unfounded” and affirming the earlier decision of acting Chief Justice Navindra Singh, who had dismissed the High Court proceedings brought by the father and son.
The Mohamed’s had previously been ordered to pay $500,000 to each defendant when the case was dismissed in the high court. In a mockery of the court system earlier last month, the Mohamed’s attempted to pay that with two wheelbarrows of money of small denominations and coins.
Following their loss in the COA, the Mohamed’s have since appealed the case with the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), Guyana’s final court. The CCJ has issued a stay on the substantive case before the Magistrate’s court pending their ruling on the challenge on April 21. Should they lose, the Mohamed’s could be slapped with another set of court costs.

“Hard” unequivocal evidence
Meanwhile, even as the Mohamed’s continue to fight their extradition to the US to face the charges against them, the US ambassador is firm on the US stance that the Mohamed’s are guilty as charged and must face the music.
Speaking during an interview on the programme “Sources”, Theriot staunchly dismissed claims that the case is politically motivated, emphasising that the US has “hard”, “unequivocal” evidence against the Mohameds for the crimes they have been charged with.
“Why would we take on a case we do not think we’re going to win? That is just a waste of the US taxpayer’s money. It’s in the Guyanese judiciary hands at this point, and we are ready to move forward,” Theriot had said.
On Tuesday, Nandlall defended the ambassadors’ statements on Mohamed’s guilt.
“The statements of the ambassador have provided no new information. The ambassador has simply stated the facts, and a restatement of those facts has become necessary because of the overwhelming deluge of misinformation being peddled by Mohameds… they’re peddling the same level of misinformation in court documents before the courts of this country,” Nandlall noted.
“I see a lot of people commenting that the ambassador should not express her belief in expressing the guilt of the two Mohameds. But generally speaking, every prosecutorial agency believes that the person that they’re charging or indicting is guilty of the offence. A prosecutorial agency would be wrong, acting in bad faith, if they indict or charge someone who they believe is innocent. You only charge people who you believe are guilty. So the US ambassador did not say anything that is objectionable.”

Wheelbarrows
In March, US-indicted Azruddin Mohamed sparked outrage with a public display that Nandlall described as “utter disrespect, utter contempt, and utter disregard” for the orders of the courts of Guyana.
In an episode that Nandlall said mocked the legal system, Mohamed, his sister, Hana Mohamed, and his party’s General Secretary (GS), Odessa Primus, arrived at the AG’s Chambers with two wheelbarrows of money. One contained bills in small denominations, while the other held a large volume of coins and what appeared to be small bricks. They claimed the items were intended to settle a $1 million court-ordered payment.
The payment related to a February ruling by Acting Chief Justice Navindra Singh, who awarded $500,000 in costs each to the AG, Home Affairs Minister Oneidge Walrond, and Magistrate Judy Latchman. These sums were to be paid by February 27, 2026. The Mohameds, however, failed to meet this deadline.
Azruddin and his father, Nazar Mohamed, have been indicted by a federal grand jury in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida on 11 criminal charges, including wire fraud, mail fraud, tax evasion, and money laundering. The charges are related to alleged irregularities in gold exports to the US through their company, Mohamed’s Enterprises.
The US has requested the extradition of the Mohameds to face the indictments.
In the indictments filed in October 2025 at a federal court in Florida against Nazar Mohamed, 72, and Azruddin Mohamed, 39, American prosecutors alleged that the two men were involved in a long-running operation involving the export of gold in a manner designed to avoid paying taxes and royalties owed to the Government of Guyana.
Prosecutors allege that from 2017 to 2024, official Government seals taken from a single legitimate gold shipment were reused to validate several additional shipments. United States authorities estimate that the alleged scheme resulted in approximately US$50 million in lost revenue for the Guyanese state.
Nazar Mohamed is charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and mail fraud. Azruddin Mohamed faces charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and wire fraud and is also accused of avoiding more than US$1 million in taxes linked to the importation of a Lamborghini from Miami to Guyana.