US extradition request: “An abuse of the process” – Magistrate throws out Mohameds’ constitutional challenge

…extradition case to proceed

Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman on Wednesday dismissed a constitutional application filed by US-indicted businessmen Nazar and Azruddin Mohamed, ruling that the arguments presented by their attorneys had already been settled by Guyana’s higher courts and did not warrant further consideration at the magistracy level.
The matter was initially called at 09:00h for the ruling, but before giving her decision, Magistrate Latchman granted the defence additional time to address points raised by the prosecution in earlier hearings. She later adjourned the court to 11:00h to deliver her judgement.

When she returned to the bench, the Magistrate, in delivering her decision, described the defence’s application as both “frivolous and vexatious” and characterised it as “an abuse of the process”.
She stressed that nothing raised before her was new or unsettled in law. “It is the court’s rule that a diplomatic note is not set in stone, but a treaty agreement is binding upon the party state and must be performed by them in good faith in accordance with Guyana’s convention law on treaties,” Magistrate Latchman said.
She emphasised that the central issues had already been dealt with beyond the magistracy. “I find the issues raised by the defence, having been adjudicated upon by its superior courts in Guyana,” she stated.
Addressing the defence’s reliance on older case law, Magistrate Latchman made it clear that those authorities were outdated. She specifically declined to follow the Dataram ruling, noting that “this court will not rely on the Dataram authority since that matter was dealt with prior to the Fugitive Offenders Amendment Act 2009.”
She further signalled that the court had no intention of revisiting matters long settled in law.
“I find that this issue was put to rest… Extradition is a state-to-state agreement, and the individual plays no part in the contractual arrangement. So, the court is not about to resurrect what has been put to rest,” she said.
After assessing the submissions from both sides, the Magistrate concluded that the constitutional referral mechanism was not triggered. “Having judicially examined all the issues levelled by the defence… this court sees no basis to activate the referral article. This court therefore denies the application to engage the referral article on the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana,” she ruled.
With the application denied, Magistrate Latchman confirmed that the extradition matter must proceed. Prosecutor Terrence Williams informed the court that witnesses are ready and the state is prepared to begin presenting evidence. However, the Magistrate noted that she is scheduled to proceed on leave and therefore set January 6, 2026, for the commencement of the extradition hearing. Until then, the two defendants are required to continue reporting to the Police as previously stipulated.
Speaking outside the courtroom, Prosecutor Williams said the State was satisfied with the outcome.
“We are happy to move along with the case. They have had their chance to raise their objections. They raised and the court ruled. So, we hope that in January we will be able to conduct the proceeding,” he said. Williams added that the upcoming stage of the inquiry would involve a detailed review of the evidentiary material accompanying the United States’ extradition request.
Despite the ruling, the defence signalled its intention to pursue the matter in the High Court.
Now that this aspect of the case has concluded, the extradition hearing will now proceed, with Magistrate Latchman setting January 6, 2026, for that proceeding.
The Mohameds remain on $150,000 bail each.
Their extradition is being sought under the Guyana–United Kingdom extradition treaty, which continues to operate in Guyana pursuant to Section 4(1)(a) of the Fugitive Offenders Act, Cap. 10:04, as amended by Act No. 10 of 2024. The request was formally submitted by the U.S. government on October 30, 2025.
Indicted by grand jury
The father-son duo, who are now fighting their extradition, have been indicted by a grand jury in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida on 11 criminal charges ranging from wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering, primarily connected to the export of gold to the US by their company, Mohamed’s Enterprises. The Mohameds are accused of conspiring to defraud the US and Guyanese Governments between 2017 and June 11, 2024. The father-son duo is accused of using a scheme to unlawfully obtain property by transmitting communications via interstate and foreign commerce in violation of US laws.
According to the US prosecutors, the goal was to enrich themselves and defraud the Government of Guyana by evading taxes and royalties on gold exports. They allegedly reused Guyana customs declarations and official seals on multiple shipments to make it appear that taxes and royalties had been paid when they had not. The indictment stated that Mohamed’s Enterprise would pay taxes and receive official Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Guyana Gold Board (GGB) seals for one shipment, then reuse those same seals and documents on subsequent, untaxed shipments.
The indictment further alleges that the Mohameds arranged for empty wooden boxes bearing intact GRA and GGB seals to be shipped from gold buyers in Dubai to Miami and then sent to Guyana. These boxes were then used to export gold while falsely appearing to have cleared customs and tax obligations.
US authorities allege the scheme resulted in more than US$50 million in lost taxes and royalties to the Government of Guyana. Additional indictments detail similar conduct involving shipments of gold, emails allegedly from Nazar Mohamed requesting the sealed boxes from Miami, and exports of over 165 kilograms (kg) of gold per shipment destined for Dubai. Charges six to nine focus on mail fraud, referencing the shipment of sealed empty boxes from Dubai to Miami, while charge 10 addresses money laundering, which alleges that the Mohameds knowingly transferred funds within the US with the intent to promote unlawful activity.
The other charge has to do with Azruddin Mohamed purchasing and importing a Lamborghini sports car to Guyana in 2020. The indictment alleges he directed someone to purchase the car for US$680,000, then falsify the invoice to state a value of US$75,300 to understate import taxes. The US Government is seeking forfeiture of certain assets connected to the accused. If convicted, most charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and fines of up to US$250,000, while the money laundering charge carries a fine of US$500,000 or the value of the laundered property.
The indictment follows sanctions imposed over a year ago by the US Government on the Mohameds, their businesses and Guyanese Government Permanent Secretary (PS) Mae Thomas in relation to the same allegations. The sanctions are related to the evasion of taxes on gold exports, with the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) noting that between 2019 and 2023, Mohamed’s Enterprise omitted more than 10,000 kg of gold from import and export declarations and avoided paying more than US$50 million in duty taxes to the Government of Guyana.
Since the imposition of the sanctions, the Guyana Government had suspended the licences of the Mohameds’ various businesses, highlighting that the US-sanctioned businessman is a risk and a threat to Guyana’s financial stability, sovereignty and diplomacy. Subsequently, several Government entities and local businesses, including commercial banks, have cut ties with the Mohameds.