TROY Thomas will today appear in the US before a judge to face justice for criminal acts he allegedly committed in New York in 2011, the US Embassy said.
According to the embassy, Thomas’s extradition reflects over one year of close coordination between the Government of Guyana and the U.S. Embassy.

In 2011, Thomas allegedly committed murder and other crimes in New York before fleeing to Guyana.

In 2018, the US Attorney General and Secretary of State sent an extradition request to the Government of Guyana, which the embassy served to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Guyana Police Force officers apprehended Thomas in 2018 and he has remained in Lusignan Prison since then.

Thomas exhausted any further right to appeal under the Constitution of Guyana at midnight on Wednesday.

The embassy thanks the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Guyana Police Force, the Guyana Prison Service, the Minister of Public Security, and the staff at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, for their close cooperation and commitment to justice.

“Corruption and criminal activity rob the government and citizens of Guyana of money that could have been spent on education, health care, and important infrastructure work,” the embassy noted. “Extraditions are an important law enforcement tool in fighting transnational criminal organisations. Today, a fugitive from justice is being extradited to the United States to stand trial, creating a new precedent,” the release said.

The American Embassy also noted that this is a positive step forward and commended the Government of Guyana.

“The Government of Guyana’s actions over the past year clearly indicate its dedication to law and order and established norms of international criminal justice – Guyana is moving in the right direction. Establishing a roadmap for future extraditions, bringing a fugitive to justice, making Guyana a safer place for Guyanese citizens – this is the best example of rule of law existing in Guyana,” Ambassador Sarah-Ann Lynch said.