The Guyana Government, upon the request of the United States Department of Justice, has submitted documents relating to recently sanctioned businessmen Azruddin and Nazar Mohamed, their affiliated businesses and former Government official, Mae Thomas.
The documents were dispatched by Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall.
“I dispatched under my hand, as advised by the US Department of Justice, the requisite requests for information, statements, evidence, depositions, documents or other exhibits relating to the publication by the US Treasury in respect of the sanctions imposed on Nazar Mohamed, Azruddin Mohamed, Mohamed’s Enterprise and Mae Thomas as well the designated entities of Hadi’s world and Team Mohamed’s team,” he noted during his Tuesday evening programme ‘Issues in the News.’
However, the Guyana Government is still awaiting evidence requested from the United States. According to the AG, the evidence of corruption against the three persons were requested under the Inter-American Convention on Mutal Assistance on Criminal Matters and the Inter-American Convention Against Corruption which provides facilities for states to offer mutual assistance in criminal matters.
In a statement on June 11, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that it sanctioned members of one of Guyana’s wealthiest families, Nazar Mohamed and his son, Azruddin Mohamed, their company, Mohamed’s Enterprise, and a Guyanese Government official, Mae Thomas, for their roles in alleged public corruption in Guyana.
The statement referred to the evasion of taxes on gold exports noting that between 2019 and 2023, Mohamed’s Enterprise omitted more than 10 thousand kilograms of gold from import and export declarations and avoided paying more than $50 million in duty taxes to the Government of Guyana.
Subsequently, Nazar Mohamed resigned as a Councillor for the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) while Thomas resigned from her post of Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Local Government and also as a member of the party.
Even as the government awaits feedback from the US, Mohamed’s Enterprise Cambio license was suspended while all Government agencies have stopped conducting business with the Mohameds and their related companies.
The investigation into the Mohamed family and their businesses has been ongoing for several years.
Nandlall said the Government of Guyana remains committed to thoroughly investigating the “grave allegations” against the named persons.
