State opposes Mohamed’s High Court challenge

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Mohabir Anil Nandlall, SC, said a new High Court challenge filed by the Mohameds is an abuse of the judicial process and is aimed at delaying ongoing extradition proceedings currently before the Magistrate’s Court.

The AG made these comments during his weekly “Issues in the News” programme after a hearing on Tuesday, where the High Court heard a request to pause the extradition process while a major constitutional challenge was being considered, although a Magistrate had already set aside similar arguments.

“They have moved to the High Court, canvassing the very same questions which the Magistrate rejected as frivolous and vexatious, and they are now asking the High Court to stay the hands of the Magistrate,” Minister Nandlall said.

According to the attorney general, the applicants are challenging amendments made to the Fugitive Offenders Act in 2009, arguing that the legislation is unconstitutional.

However, he noted that the 2009 amendments have been upheld for more than 15 years and applied to several extradition matters.

“They have been unable to point to a single article of the Constitution that the 2009 amendments violate. Once you cannot do that, the legislation stands.”

Minister Nandlall explained that the legal threshold for granting a stay is high in extradition matters, requiring proof of serious legal issues, irreparable harm, and that the balance of justice favours halting the proceedings. He affirmed that none of these conditions were satisfied.

He further emphasised that the Fugitive Offenders Act already provides multiple layers of appeal, including up to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), and expressly prevents extradition from taking place while those appeals are pending.

“The law does not contemplate pre-emptive strikes. It contemplates that the Magistrate must conclude the committal proceedings and then the challenges follow,” the AG stated.

He warned that allowing parallel High Court challenges before the conclusion of committal proceedings would undermine Guyana’s ability to meet its international obligations on extradition and crime-fighting.

“If extradition proceedings are inundated with collateral challenges, they will never be completed, and Guyana will cease to be a reliable international partner,” he said.

The High Court has fixed January 5, 2026, for its ruling on the stay application. Meanwhile, a separate High Court matter filed by the applicants, also seeking a stay, is yet to be scheduled for hearing.