Two Guyanese nationals face serious charges in a federal case revolving around allegations of tax evasion and money laundering, connected to their gold export business. A Miami grand jury indicted Nazar Mohamed, 72, and Azruddin Mohamed, 38, for devising ways to defraud the Government of Guyana through fraudulent controls over the export of gold, as detailed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
The documents presented in court alleged that between 2017 and at least 2024, the pair enriched themselves by hiding the true measure and worth of the gold exported by their company, Mohamed’s Enterprise. This indictment comes just after Azruddin Mohamed, the younger of the pair, unsuccessfully ran for president of Guyana but secured a place in its parliament. Speakers Jason A. Reding Quiñones, Matthew R. Galeotti, José R. Figueroa, and Ricky J. Patel from respective divisions of U.S. law enforcement involved in the case communicated these allegations, highlighting a complex scam involving the re-use of official government seals to get around paying due taxes and royalties for gold shipments.
Investigators claim the fraudulent activity led to an estimated $50 million loss for the Guyanese government, involving no less than 10,000 kilograms of gold passing through Miami en route to markets, as the duo reportedly engaged in elaborate schemes including shipping empty boxes with seals from Dubai and bribing officials to turn a blind eye. The indictment doesn't forget to mention an ironic twist; it suggests that one of the accused, Azruddin Mohamed, separately dodged over a million dollars in taxes in Guyana involving the shipment of a Lamborghini from Miami to Guyana, showing the range of their purported fiscal defiance, according to the press release.
In light of these charges, both men were also slapped with sanctions by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control in June 2024, the details of which are in the indictment stating the seizure of approximately $5.3 million in gold bars at Miami International Airport also runs parallel to this wider investigation into their alleged economic crimes, the investigation involved collaboration from HSI in Miami and New York, IRS-CI, and the U.S. Marshals Service among others, displaying a cross-agency effort to clamp down on international financial deceit.
Their presumed innocence stands until proven guilty by due process of law, with forthcoming proceedings likely to reveal more about the extent and intricacies of their alleged transgressions.
