EVERY person in legal trouble needs a defence. For Azruddin Mohamed, Guyana’s Opposition Leader, that defence has focused on one familiar argument: Political persecution.
However, on Wednesday, the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) provided what might be a final blow to that shaky narrative.
They released troubling surveillance footage that shows a currency exchange happening at his Lombard Street location. This, mind you, is happening although the cambio’s licence was revoked nearly two years ago.
Mohamed’s immediate reaction followed a familiar pattern. Instead of addressing the evidence, he referenced his parliamentary speech from last Friday, where he alleged that he helped “bankroll” the PPP.
He claimed that this speech triggered the raid. “I think it’s because of the speech in Parliament, this is the outcome,” he stated.
This deflection is convenient, but it does not hold up under even slight examination. The SOCU operation was based on credible information that the cambio was operating without a licence; information that the video evidence now seems to support.
A second video released on Thursday captures what the authorities describe as the sound of local and foreign currency being exchanged just minutes before the raid began.
Mohamed insists that his businesses have been closed since 2024. The footage presents a very different picture. His aggressive behaviour during the raid, which included hurling invectives at officers executing a court-approved warrant, suggests he is not a victim of persecution but rather someone unaccustomed to facing consequences.
The larger context makes the persecution claim even less believable. The Mohamed family’s troubles did not start with Guyanese politics; they began in the United States. In June 2024, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Azruddin, his father, Nazar, and Mohamed’s Enterprise under the Global Magnitsky Act for alleged public corruption and gold smuggling.
As a result, the Bank of Guyana revoked their cambio licence, a regulatory measure rather than a political one. Then, in October 2025, a federal grand jury in Florida unsealed an 11-count indictment against both men for conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, and customs violations related to a scheme that allegedly defrauded Guyana of over US$50 million in gold export taxes. They were arrested, released on bail, and are now facing extradition proceedings.
As a letter in the Guyana Chronicle noted back in January 2026, Mohamed cannot convincingly claim political persecution, when, according to his own family’s words, their problems began after a Reuters investigation and US sanctions, and not due to domestic political conflict.
The alleged wrongdoing by the Mohameds predates the formation of their political party; the US indictment details actions from 2017 to 2024, years before Azruddin entered the electoral scene.
The “political persecution” excuse is often the last resort for those in legal trouble. It seeks to shift attention away from facts and towards feelings; from legal matters to public sympathy.
However, the SOCU footage, the US indictment, the OFAC sanctions, and the revoked licences create a strong and consistent case, based on alleged criminal activity; not parliamentary speeches. No amount of dramatic rhetoric from the Opposition can erase the video proof.
SOCU made it clear: “No one is above the law”. This principle applies to every citizen, including those in Parliament. Mohamed would be wise to confront the evidence rather than try to deflect from it
