President Irfaan Ali this afternoon said he does not believe it is for the local Court to try the US case against Azruddin and Nazar Mohamed, but rather for the local Court to simply determine whether enough evidence exists for their extradition to face trial in the US.

Speaking to reporters this afternoon, while noting that the Mohameds are entitled to due process, the President said he has taken note of some statements being made about the Court case here, particularly statements from Azruddin Mohamed.

“I believe that the Mohamed’s must have due process, they are having that process. But I want to remind you that it’s not for Courts of Guyana or the Magistrate to try this case. It is for the Magistrate to determine that there is enough evidence that constitutes a crime in the U.S and for the extradition to take place based on that. And what we’ve seen so far is that all the documents relating to the crime being committed has been submitted to the Court, and of course, we also have to remember that it is a jury, a grand jury of, I think, 12 persons who would have concluded that there is enough evidence to determine the extradition. So the grand jury has already determined that. So I think that it’s a simple proceeding, and we await as we said, due process, but I’m sure that we are all aware that this is not the case is not for trial in Guyana, and we have seen that the grand jury would have already determined that there is enough evidence for the extradition to take place”, Ali said.

Billionnaire businessmen, Azruddin and Nazar Mohamed will return to Court on Friday for the continuation of the extradition hearing. They are facing an 11-count indictment in the United States over allegations of wire and mail fraud and money laundering related to gold exports and tax evasion. The Mohameds have declared their innocence and are fighting the extradition request by the US Government.

The Prosecuting Attorneys have been making disclosures to the Court and it is expected that the disclosures will continue on Friday.

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