Dear Editor,
When Azruddin Mohamed declared in November 2025 that his extradition proceedings would take another five years and pass through four more magistrates, many Guyanese were alarmed by the confidence with which he appeared to predict the course of a case that had barely begun.
His reported words were chilling: “It will take another five years and four other Magistrates.”
Many questioned how Mohamed could speak with such certainty about a matter controlled by the courts, asking why he appeared to believe he was “in charge of the court.” Such a definitive prediction suggested confidence in a system capable of delivering the delay the Mohameds anticipated.
Months later, the country must confront an uncomfortable question: Has Azruddin Mohamed found a willing participant in his publicly declared plan to frustrate the extradition proceedings for five years?
The United States is seeking the extradition of Azruddin and his father, Nazar, to face an 11-count federal indictment in the Southern District of Florida. The charges include allegations of conspiracy, mail and wire fraud, money laundering and customs-related offences arising from an alleged international gold-export scheme.
These are grave allegations involving Guyana’s gold resources, public revenue, State institutions and international reputation. The seriousness of the case demands an efficient and disciplined judicial process.
Through its continued accommodation of these delays, the court risks being viewed as a willing participant in the very strategy Mohamed openly announced. That perception is damaging, corrosive and dangerous to public confidence in the administration of justice.
This matter has already travelled through the Magistrates’ Court, the High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Caribbean Court of Justice. On July 29, 2026, the CCJ dismissed the Mohameds’ challenge to the Authority to Proceed and cleared the way for the extradition hearing to continue. The CCJ confirmed that ruling in its official release.
The entire judiciary is now under the microscope. Every adjournment strengthens the perception that wealth, influence and an aggressive legal strategy can exhaust the system and keep accountability beyond reach.
Azruddin Mohamed promised five years, but the court must ensure that its proceedings do not become the vehicle through which that promise is fulfilled.