US Ambassador Speaks on Sanctions Against Guyanese Citizens

by Nicole Telford
US Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot, addressed the recent sanctions against Nazar Mohamed, his son Azruddin Mohamed, and former Permanent Secretary Mae Thomas, highlighting the thorough investigation behind these actions. “These sanctions were two and a half plus years of investigations ongoing in the United States. We reserve these types of sanctions for gross levels of corruption and human rights abuses,”Ambassador Theriot stated.

Thomas was sent on leave after the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) linked her to alleged crimes with the Mohamed family. The U.S. claims she misused her position to benefit Mohamed’s Enterprise and Azruddin Mohamed in exchange for cash and high-value gifts, influencing contract bids and approval processes for weapons permits and passports.  VP Jagdeo has stated that the Mohameds bid on two contracts and won them both with low bids.

Theriot emphasized, “It was a whole US Government investigation… We do not do this lightly. This is something that we ensure we have a preponderance of evidence before we’re ready to issue sanctions, and we had that in this case against the three individuals who were sanctioned.”

Additionally, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, Finance Minister Ashni Singh and Commissioner General Godfrey Statia have sought more information, officially requesting documentation used in the investigation. Theriot noted that she has strongly recommended sharing as much unclassified information as possible to allow the Guyanese government to conduct its own follow-up investigation. “We want to be very transparent. The government of Guyana has been very transparent with us, and we want to do the same in return,” she added.

The ambassador acknowledged the concerns of local agencies feeling left in the dark but explained that the investigation had to be kept confidential to avoid compromise. She assured that efforts are being made to expedite the sharing of relevant information with the Guyanese authorities.