High Court rejects Mohameds’ challenge to extradition law
February 24 2026
Extradition proceedings against businessmen and father-and-son duo Azruddin Mohamed, who also serves as Guyana’s Leader of the Opposition, and Nazar Mohamed can move forward after the High Court dismissed most of their constitutional challenge to Guyana’s extradition laws.
In a 26-page ruling delivered on Tuesday at the High Court in Demerara, Acting Chief Justice Navindra Singh rejected the Mohameds’ arguments that several sections of the Fugitive Offenders Act, including amendments made in 2009, were unconstitutional.
Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, said the court upheld almost all provisions, finding them consistent with the Constitution of Guyana.
According to him, only a minor subsection was struck down, but it does not affect the current extradition process.
That provision relates to protections against extradition to third countries, which are already guaranteed by prior court rulings, and the United States has confirmed the Mohameds will not be transferred elsewhere.
The Mohameds had also challenged the Minister of Home Affairs’ authority to allow extradition and raised allegations of bias in the process.
Nandlall accused their lawyers of attempting to delay proceedings, citing false medical claims and other fabricated incidents introduced during the hearing before Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman.
He further argued that cross-examination of state witnesses was being used to complicate matters unnecessarily, despite extradition hearings being primarily documentary.
The Attorney General highlighted that oral committal hearings have been replaced by paper committals, which rely on indictments and supporting documents from the requesting country.
He pointed to a recent case, the Ronley Floyd Bynoe matter, as an example of a straightforward extradition process that concluded efficiently.
The extradition request, submitted by the US Government on October 30, 2025, is part of ongoing investigations into alleged large-scale corruption, including gold smuggling, bribery, and money laundering.
Nazar, 72, and Azruddin Mohamed, 38, are being pursued under the Guyana–United Kingdom Extradition Treaty, as retained under Section 4(1)(a) of the Fugitive Offenders Act, Cap. 10:04, updated by Act No. 10 of 2024.
The father-son duo, along with their business interests, were sanctioned by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on June 11, 2024, over allegations of large-scale corruption, including gold smuggling, money laundering, and bribery.
Investigations indicate attempts to evade over US$50 million in taxes owed to the Guyanese government.
A grand jury in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida has indicted Nazar and Azruddin Mohamed on 11 counts, including wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering, primarily linked to the export of gold by Mohamed’s Enterprises to the United States.
Convictions on most charges carry maximum penalties of 20 years imprisonment and fines up to US$250,000, while the money laundering charge carries a potential fine of US$500,000 or the value of laundered assets.
Both defendants remain out on bail of $150,000 each as the extradition process continues, having surrendered their passports. They are also required to report weekly to Ruimveldt Police Station.
The next hearing is scheduled for February 26, 2026, from 9:00h to 15:00h.
