—Special Branch Unit head rejects claim President ordered surveillance of Azruddin Mohamed

CHIEF Magistrate Judy Latchman, on Monday, ruled that questions about Senior Superintendent of Police Prem Narine’s promotions and mosque attendance were irrelevant to the extradition proceedings against Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed and his father, Nazar Mohamed.
The ruling came as Narine, Head of the Special Branch Unit, was being further cross-examined by defence attorney Siand Dhurjon at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
Prosecutor and Jamaican attorney Herbert McKenzie had repeatedly objected to Dhurjon’s questions concerning alleged political surveillance and Narine’s relationship with President Dr Irfaan Ali.

The prosecution argued that several issues raised by the defence, including Narine’s professional advancement, alleged interactions with the President Irfaan Ali, attendance at the mosque and methods used to conduct surveillance, had no relevance to the extradition proceedings.
At one point, McKenzie objected when Dhurjon asked Narine whether he had received professional advancement under the Peoples Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) Government, describing the question as “irrelevant and offensive.”
The Chief Magistrate ultimately ruled that questions concerning Narine’s promotions and the ranks he had attained were irrelevant to the proceedings and would not be allowed.
McKenzie also objected when Dhurjon questioned Narine about whether he attended Queenstown Masjid, where the defence said he encountered and conversed with President Ali.
McKenzie maintained that the mosque attended by the witness was irrelevant. The court agreed that the issue had no bearing on the proceedings and the line of questioning was not allowed.
Further, Narine outright rejected allegations that he had been instructed by President Ali to keep Mohamed under surveillance and that the monitoring had begun in 2024.
“That is not true,” he said when it was suggested that the President had instructed him to monitor Azruddin Mohamed.
He subsequently denied that anyone had recommended or suggested that Mohamed be monitored.
McKenzie also objected to a question suggesting that Narine had focused most of Special Branch Unit’s resources on monitoring Mohamed from early 2024.
However, Narine said that Azruddin and his father were under surveillance on the day they were arrested.
Asked whether the two men were under Special Branch surveillance on October 31, 2025, Narine answered, “yes.”

The formal U.S. extradition request was received by the Government of Guyana on October 30, 2025, and both Nazar and Azruddin Mohamed were arrested by the Guyana Police Force the following morning on October 31, 2025.
Narine said he did not immediately know Azruddin’s location and had to make checks at several locations. When asked whether those checks involved physically visiting the locations, Narine explained that he picked up the telephone and made inquiries.
He said, “I picked the phone up and I made inquiries.”
Narine is expected to return to the witness stand on Tuesday for further cross-examination by the defence.
The extradition case stems from an October 30, 2025, request by the United States for the surrender of the Mohameds to face an 11-count federal indictment. The indictment includes allegations of wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and customs offences.
U.S. prosecutors alleged that the two businessmen participated in a multi-year scheme involving the export of Guyanese gold using falsified customs declarations and reused government export seals, allegedly resulting in the evasion of more than US$50 million in taxes and royalties.
The indictment also concerns a Lamborghini vehicle, with prosecutors alleging that Azruddin caused the vehicle to be shipped from Miami to Guyana and used a false invoice that understated its purchase price, resulting in more than US$1 million in allegedly avoided Guyanese taxes.
The two men were arrested on October 31, 2025, and each was granted $150,000 bail, with conditions requiring them to surrender their passports and report to the Ruimveldt Police Station.
The committal proceedings commenced on January 6, 2026, but have been repeatedly interrupted by legal challenges filed by the defence, most of which have ultimately failed.
The Mohameds were sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury in 2024 over allegations of corruption and a gold-smuggling scheme and were subsequently indicted by U.S. federal grand jury on related charges.