GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed said he is not surprised that the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) said Wednesday it had discovered illegal cambio operations at Mohamed’s Enterprise.
Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed (right) watches as members of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) search his business in the capital (CMC Photo)“I think it’s because of the speech in Parliament, this is the outcome but whatever I’m saying is the truth. I have no need to lie about anything,” said Mohamed, who told the National Assembly last Friday that he helped to finance the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C).
SOCU said the discovery was made during a targeted joint law enforcement operation at the establishment following the receipt of “credible information” and that during the course of the operation, officers uncovered evidence of illegal financial operations and additional materials believed to be connected to unlawful activities.
It said all items seized are currently subject to active forensic and financial investigation and that several individuals are assisting with ongoing enquiries.
SOCU said investigations remain active and further enforcement action will be taken where the evidence so warrants.
“This action forms part of an intensified national and regional security strategy aimed at disrupting organised criminal networks engaged in gold smuggling, illicit financial flows, unlicensed money exchange operations and related serious offences,” SOCU noted.
Mohamed said that the police seized just under two million dollars (One Guyana dollar=US$0.004 cents) and several boxes of documents related to gold trading as well as the personal firearm belonging to one of his relatives.
He also one relative and an employee had been taken to a police station by SOCU at the end of the 30-minute search.
He said the money seized was being used to help the less fortunate.
“They didn’t find any gold, didn’t find any drugs, they didn’t find any large amount of money. All they found was a couple hundred dollars that we would help beggars on a daily basis,” he said, noting that was the first search of the Mohameds premises since the US sanctions.
Mohammed, along with his billionaire businessman father, Nazar ‘Shell’ Mohamed, were sanctioned by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for allegedly smuggling more than 10,000 kilogrammes of gold worth more than US$50 million and in the process failing to pay the relevant taxes to the Guyana government.
Last October, a US Federal Grand Jury unsealed a 11-count indictment on the Mohameds for alleged wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering. Subsequently, the US requested his extradition to face trial for those alleged crimes. The extradition matter is now before the local courts.
In a video of the search by SOCU posted on his Team Mohamed’s Facebook page, a man was seen reading a document alleging that the Mohameds had in their possession at that building precious minerals, local and foreign currency, electronic documents and financial documents to assist in the investigation of money laundering.
A man was heard telling Mohamed that a dog, which was at the scene, was trained to locate firearms, narcotics and cash. The man then informed Mohamed that he would not be searching the prayer area, to which the Opposition Leader replied “you sure you don’t want to search the masjid. (President) Irfaan Ali used to come and pray in that same masjid.”
“Sheer political persecution in this country just because I am standing up to the PPP for the people of this country, this is what I am going through,” Mohamed said, urging the search party to go and search other places.
He said he had nothing in the offices because the government had already shut down his businesses and Mohamed in the video is seen frequently asking members of the search party be with him to avoid any alleged planting of drugs in his premises.
Mohamed said he and his father were not required to surrender any cash or gold to the government after the United States sanctions and he had asked for a special account to be established at the Bank of Guyana to “store whatever little cash we have” after the commercial banks had closed both his and his father’s accounts following the OFAC sanction.
