US fugitives wanted for sexual offences extradited from Guyana

Fugitives Julian Yhip and Kareem Hack were on February 25 successfully extradited from Guyana to the United States to faces charges on separate sexual offences, the US Embassy has announced.

This was as a result of a joint endeavour involving the US Embassy, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Guyana Police Force, the US Department of Justice, the United States Marshal Service, and the Diplomatic Security Service.

Yhip, a Guyanese national, will face charges in Pennsylvania for rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and sexual assault committed in 2017. Hack, a United States citizen, is facing charges in Florida for sexual battery, procuring a person under 18 for prostitution and attempt to commit sexual battery committed in 2006.

Hack was previously featured on America’s Most Wanted in October 2008.

In August 2021, the United States Government made a formal request for the extradition of Hack and Yhip, and they were arrested and placed before the courts in early February 2022. The two did not contest the charges and were subsequently extradited.

This is the fourth extradition of US. fugitives from Guyana to the United States in the last 25-years.

“The extradition of the two fugitives strengthens the rule of law in Guyana and reflects the strong professional law enforcement and judicial cooperation between the United States and the Government of Guyana,” the US Embassy said in a statement on the matter.