EXTRADITION proceedings involving US-indicted businessmen and father-and-son duo Nazar Mohamed and Azruddin Mohamed continued on Thursday, with Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman refusing the defence request for the disclosure of alleged contracts between the Government of Guyana and United States-based lobbying firms.

At the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, magistrate Latchman cited an earlier ruling denying the request, maintaining that the disclosure sought by the defence was not necessary for the determination of the extradition proceedings currently before the court.

The court also heard testimony from Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Sharon Roopchand-Edwards, who spoke about receiving the extradition documents relating to the Mohameds.

The Permanent Secretary acknowledged being aware that the Government of Guyana had contracts with the firms Continental Strategy LLC and DR Consulting.

However, when asked whether she knew the individual responsible for communicating with the firms, Roopchand-Edwards responded, “No.”

Defence Attorney Siand Dhurjon further questioned whether she knew the purpose for which the firms were hired.

“And you have no clue about what these firms were hired for?” he asked.

“Yes,” Roopchand-Edwards replied.

The attorney also suggested that her predecessor, Elisabeth Harper, had entered into a contract with Continental Strategy LLC in December 2024. Roopchand-Edwards said she was unaware of that.

The court also heard evidence about the delivery of the extradition request documents from the United States.

Dhurjon asked whether she opened the documents immediately after receiving them on October 30, 2025. Roopchand-Edwards confirmed that she did.

“Yes,” she said.

She also told the court that the envelope in which the documents arrived was not sealed.

“The white envelope was not sealed. It was unsealed when it was handed to me by the marshal,” she explained.

She further stated that the envelope was opened in her presence before the documents were handed to her.

“The marshal opened it in my presence and handed it to me. The envelope was opened in my presence,” she said.

When asked whether the envelope contained the full set of documents, Roopchand-Edwards said they were inside a folder.

“There was a folder and it was taken out and it had all the relevant documents,” she told the court.

During cross-examination, Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde questioned Roopchand-Edwards about a statement she provided during the investigation.

Forde asked whether she had prepared a statement on November 27, 2025.

“Yes,” she replied, adding that it was prepared in consultation with a legal officer at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and prosecutor, Jamaican attorney Herbert McKenzie. Forde also asked when she was first contacted about giving the statement.

“I can’t recall the exact date. It might have been a few days before (November 27, 2025),” Roopchand-Edwards said.

When asked who contacted her, she said it was the ministry’s legal officer and McKenzie.

She also denied preparing any statement in anticipation of an extradition request from the United States for the Mohameds.

Roopchand-Edwards explained that her understanding of anticipation would mean she had prior knowledge that the request was coming.

According to her, the final statement was transmitted to McKenzie through her legal officer.

Following further cross-examination by Forde during the afternoon session, Roopchand-Edwards’ testimony was adjourned. She is expected to return to the witness box this morning.

Besides McKenzie, the prosecution team also features Jamaican King’s Counsel Terrence Williams, Jamaican attorney Celine Dedrick, and lawyer Glenn Hanoman. Also representing the Mohameds is attorney Damien Da Silva.

On the morning of October 31, 2025, businessman Nazar Mohamed and his son Azruddin Mohamed were taken into custody in Georgetown following an extradition request from the United States, which had been transmitted the previous day.

The two men, who own Mohamed’s Enterprise, were subsequently granted bail in the sum of $150,000 each as the extradition proceedings continue.

As part of their bail conditions, they were required to surrender their passports and report weekly to the Ruimveldt Police Station. These measures were imposed to ensure their availability for the ongoing court process.

The father, 72, and son, 39, are the subjects of an 11-count indictment filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. They are jointly charged on 10 of those counts, while Azruddin Mohamed faces an additional charge relating to the importation of a 2020 Lamborghini Roadster SVJ into Guyana.

Court filings allege that the two conspired to commit wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, and customs-related offences, including conspiracy, aiding and abetting. The allegations are linked to what investigators describe as a US$50 million gold export and tax evasion scheme.

The indictment was handed down by a grand jury in October 2025.

According to the documents, Nazar Mohamed holds a 90 per cent stake in Mohamed’s Enterprise, while his son owns the remaining 10 per cent. The most serious charge carries a potential maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

In June 2024, both men and their associated companies were sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, a division of the United States Department of the Treasury, over allegations of gold smuggling and large-scale corruption. The sanctions announcement also referenced claims that more than US$50 million in taxes owed to the Guyanese state had been evaded.

United States authorities are believed to have begun investigating the Mohameds as far back as the mid-2010s. The probe reportedly involved intelligence sharing and law-enforcement cooperation between Guyana and the United States.

Several American agencies were involved in the investigation, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Homeland Security.

Prosecutors allege that between 2017 and 2024 the two businessmen participated in a scheme to export large quantities of gold from Guyana to the United States using falsified customs declarations and reused government export seals.

Investigators claim the operation enabled the shipment of more than 10,000 kilogrammes of gold while avoiding the payment of taxes and royalties owed to the Guyanese state.

United States authorities further contend that the alleged scheme resulted in approximately US$50 million in losses to taxes and duties and involved acts of wire and mail fraud, money laundering and conspiracy.

The indictment also references a shipment of gold valued at approximately US$5.3 million that was seized at Miami International Airport during the course of the investigation.

Following the indictment, the United States formally sought the surrender of the two men under the extradition arrangements between the two countries, giving rise to the ongoing proceedings now before the local court.