By Travis Chase | HGP Nightly News|
GEORGETOWN, GUYANA — The Court of Appeal has cleared the way for extradition proceedings against prominent businessman Nazar Mohamed and his son, Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed, to continue before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court, while placing a strict judicial bar on the presiding Magistrate from issuing any final determination until a pending constitutional appeal is resolved.
The unanimous ruling was delivered on Thursday, August 27, 2026, by a three-member appellate bench comprising Acting Chancellor of the Judiciary Justice Roxane George, alongside Justices of Appeal Rishi Persaud and Nareshwar Harnanan.
Judicial Balancing Act: Proceedings Move Forward, Verdict Frozen
The Mohameds had petitioned the appellate court for an absolute stay of the lower court extradition proceedings while they pursue a substantive appeal challenging the constitutional validity of specific sections of Guyana’s Fugitive Offenders Act (Cap. 10:04):
- Interim Arrangement: The Court declined to issue a blanket stay. After weighing the balance of convenience, potential prejudice, the risk of injustice, and the wider public interest, the judges fashioned a conditional interim order.
- Scope of Lower Court Hearings: Under the ruling, the Magistrate’s Court may continue to take depositions, hear witness testimony, admit documentary exhibits, and complete preliminary procedural steps.
- Prohibition on Final Order: The presiding Magistrate is strictly restrained from making a final ruling, committal order, or discharge decision while the constitutional challenge remains pending before the Court of Appeal.
- Expedited Appellate Timeline: The Court directed that the substantive constitutional appeal be case-managed and heard on an expedited timetable.
Constitutional Challenge to Fugitive Offenders Act
The core legal challenge mounted by the Mohameds questions the constitutionality of specific provisions within the Fugitive Offenders Act governing extradition treaty requests and the statutory standards applied by the local magistracy.
The appellate ruling creates a procedural bridge: allowing the state to advance the evidentiary record without rendering the Mohameds’ constitutional challenge moot prior to appellate determination.
Legal Representation
The matter features senior legal representation on both sides:
- For the Applicants: Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, SC, appearing alongside Attorneys-at-Law Siand Dhurjon and Damien DaSilva, represented Nazar and Azruddin Mohamed.
- For the State: Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Mohabir Anil Nandlall, SC, led the state’s legal team resisting the total stay.
Case management dates for the expedited substantive appeal are scheduled to be finalized in the coming days.
