U.S. Warns Guyana: Presidential Candidate Could Strain Relations

UNITED STATES – U.S. Ambassador to Guyana Nicole Theriot has raised alarm over the political aspirations of Azruddin Mohamed, a presidential candidate currently under U.S. government sanctions.

She told reporters on the sidelines of the Global Biodiversity Summit in Georgetown, that the U.S. was extremely concerned about the possibility of sanctioned Guyanese businessman Azruddin Mohamed being elected a parliamentarian.

Theriot also cautioned that if someone who is sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department’s office of foreign assets control is elected, that that could send jitters down the U.S. Private sector and affect Guyana’s investment climate.

Mohamed and his father, Nazar “Shell” Mohamed, were sanctioned in June 2024 for allegedly evading $50 million dollars in taxes payable to the Guyana government on the export of more than 10,000 kilograms of gold.