Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman repeatedly halted lines of questioning Thursday in the extradition proceedings involving U.S.-indicted businessmen Nazar Mohamed and his son Azruddin Mohamed, telling the court that the defence appeared to be engaging in a “fishing expedition” and “building castles in the sky.”
The exchanges occurred during continued cross-examination of the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Sharon Roopchand-Edwards at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
During questioning, Siand Dhurjon pressed the witness about contracts between the Government of Guyana and two U.S.-based lobbying firms — Continental Strategy LLC and DR Consulting.
Roopchand-Edwards confirmed that the Ministry entered into contracts with both firms and that, in her role as Permanent Secretary, she facilitated payments to them.
When Dhurjon attempted to link those contracts to the extradition request for the Mohameds, prosecutor Herbert McKenzie objected, arguing that the defence had not shown the relevance of the line of questioning. Dhurjon maintained that he was seeking to establish that the Government may have hired lobbyists to influence thinking and support the extradition request made by the United States.
But Magistrate Latchman stopped the questioning.
“You’re not a good fishing person,” she told Dhurjon, indicating she would not allow what she described as a fishing expedition unless the defence could demonstrate clear relevance to the extradition inquiry.
At one point, Magistrate Latchman questioned the relevance of the line of questioning, asking whether it was “fish, flesh or red herring” before ultimately disallowing it.
The magistrate also said the defence appeared to be “building castles in the sky”, warning that the court would not permit speculative questioning.
Roopchand-Edwards, meanwhile, told the court she was not aware that lobbyists had been hired specifically to guarantee the extradition of the Mohameds.
The courtroom exchanges came as Dhurjon continued to challenge aspects of the witness’s evidence, including her handling of the envelope containing the extradition request documents from the United States.
Roopchand-Edwards said the envelope containing the documents had been opened in her presence by a marshal before being handed to her.
Dhurjon suggested inconsistencies in whether the envelope had been sealed or unsealed when it was received, prompting the magistrate to review the record of questions and answers.
After the exchange, Roopchand-Edwards clarified that the envelope had been unsealed when it was handed to her, explaining that the marshal opened it in her presence before passing the documents to her.
Earlier in the proceedings, Magistrate Latchman also refused a request by the defence for additional disclosure of documents in the case.
Dhurjon had asked the court to revisit its earlier decision, arguing that material from the U.S. State Department suggested the existence of a contract between the Government of Guyana and a lobbying firm.
However, prosecutors Glenn Hanoman and McKenzie objected, saying the defence had already received the necessary disclosure and was attempting to search for irrelevant material.
Latchman declined the application and directed that the cross-examination continue.
More questions not allowed
When cross-examination resumed Thursday afternoon, several additional questions from defence attorney Roysdale Forde, SC, were disallowed by Principal Magistrate Judy Latchman as he sought to probe the preparation of a statement signed by Permanent Secretary Sharon Roopchand-Edwards on November 27.
Roopchand-Edwards told the court that the statement was prepared in consultation with a lawyer from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs using a template for extradition matters and that a draft was reviewed before the final version was completed and signed.
Forde attempted to question the differences between an earlier draft and the final statement, but prosecutor McKenzie objected, arguing that there was no draft statement before the court as an exhibit. Magistrate Latchman upheld the objection, ruling that cross-examination on the contents of a draft statement would not be permitted.
Further cross-examination was deferred as the hearing adjourned until Friday morning.
The committal proceedings form part of the extradition inquiry into Nazar Mohamed and Azruddin Mohamed, who are wanted in the United States on multiple alleged financial offences, including wire fraud and money laundering.
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