President Dr. Irfaan Ali has challenged businessman Azruddin Mohamed to provide proof that he ever presented the true invoice of a Lamborghini Aventador to the Office of the President, dismissing claims that he authorised any tax waiver related to the luxury vehicle as “ridiculous”.
“The authority to waive taxes rests with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and its Commissioner General. At no time have I instructed the GRA on any tax matter regarding Mr Mohamed,” the President said in an invited comment to the News Room on Thursday.
“I would definitely like Mr Mohamed to share any information in which he presented to me the true invoice of the vehicle which is now available to GRA. It is ridiculous for Mr Mohamed to suggest otherwise.”
Dr. Ali further clarified that while tax matters are frequently brought to the attention of the presidency, they are appropriately referred to the GRA, which operates independently in such matters.
“Any matter in relation to taxes – and many such matters are raised with the president – are sent to the GRA. In this instance, the GRA made it very clear to Mr Mohamed that they were investigating the true value of the vehicle and in the course of that investigation the true value of the vehicle is now established,” he added.
Mohamed made the claim outside the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, shortly after he was granted $500,000 bail. He had just pleaded not guilty to two criminal charges related to fraudulent declarations made to the GRA concerning the vehicle’s importation.
Azzurdin Mohamed at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court
The charges stem from an investigation that revealed major discrepancies in the declared value of the Lamborghini Aventador. Mohamed is accused of declaring the vehicle at just US$76,000 — a figure vastly lower than the US$695,000 indicated in original purchase documents now in the hands of authorities.
The evidence, submitted in a supplemental 78-page affidavit filed in the High Court last week, includes the original invoice obtained through the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) between Guyana and the United States.
GRA attorneys argue the under-declaration was no clerical error but a deliberate act of fraud intended to evade substantial taxes. A conviction could lead to fines ranging from $10,000 to three times the value of the evaded taxes, as well as imprisonment of up to three years.
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