HGP Nightly News – In a major blow to efforts to pause the proceedings, Acting Chief Justice Navindra Singh has refused an application for a stay in the legal battle involving U.S.-indicted businessmen Nazar Mohamed and Azruddin Mohamed, effectively clearing the runway for their extradition hearing to begin tomorrow.
With the stay rejected, the extradition matter is set to commence on January 6 before Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court. Meanwhile, the High Court is scheduled to reconvene on January 14, 2026, to hear the substantive constitutional challenge filed by the father-and-son duo.
That challenge is before the court by way of a Fixed Date Application (FDA), in which the Mohameds are contesting the constitutionality of the Fugitive Offenders (Amendment) Act. Named as respondents in the proceedings are Home Affairs Minister Oneidge Walrond, Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, and Magistrate Judy Latchman.
Through their attorneys, the Mohameds have argued that key parts of the amended law are unconstitutional, with particular focus on the Authority to Proceed (ATP) — the instrument that initiated the extradition process against them. They contend that the ATP is unconstitutional, void, and of no legal effect.
On that basis, they have sought orders to quash the ATP through certiorari, along with declarations that Ministers Walrond and Nandlall should have no role in the issuance of an Authority to Proceed. They are also asking for orders of prohibition to bar the two ministers from any further involvement in their extradition process, and to suspend the magistrate’s court proceedings pending the High Court’s ruling.
The FDA was filed only days after Magistrate Latchman dismissed a separate constitutional application by the Mohameds that sought to have the extradition case sent to the High Court.
In her December 10 decision, Latchman said the defence arguments had already been settled by Guyana’s higher courts and therefore did not justify referral at the magistrate’s level. She described the application as “frivolous and vexatious” and “an abuse of the process.” Following that ruling, she confirmed the extradition matter must proceed and fixed January 6 for the start of the hearing.
The extradition request is being pursued under the Guyana–United Kingdom extradition treaty, which continues to apply in Guyana pursuant to Section 4(1)(a) of the Fugitive Offenders Act, Cap. 10:04, as amended by Act No. 10 of 2024.
The request was formally submitted by the United States Government on October 30, 2025. The Mohameds are sought to face charges before a Miami court, including money laundering, tax evasion, wire fraud, and other offences. For now, the courts have made one thing clear: the extradition case will not be paused at this stage, and the hearing is moving ahead as scheduled.
