Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed was arrested twice last Thursday in a rapidly escalating confrontation with police near President Irfaan Ali’s private residence at Leonora — and after his first release, he used a social-media broadcast to explain what he said had brought him to the area in the first place.
In the social media video recording, Mohamed walked through the area near the Leonora seawall, pointing out a massive fenced property, extensive construction, bright lighting and what he alleged was an encroachment onto government reserve.
He presented the video as an explanation to the public of what he had been examining earlier that day before his first arrest.
The episode began when police intercepted a black Toyota Land Cruiser near the President’s residence following reports of suspicious activity and alleged drone use. Mohamed, his driver Eugene Thorne and technician Dwayne Ross were taken to the Leonora Police Station. A DJI drone and four cellular phones were reportedly found in the vehicle.
Mohamed denied owning or operating the drone. Ross reportedly told police that the drone belonged to him. Mohamed was subsequently released on self-bail while the investigation continued.
It was after that release that Mohamed returned to the subject in a social-media presentation.
Walking through the area, he directed viewers’ attention to the property and its enormous fence.
“As you can see, the fence for the masjid is ending here, and about 30 to 40 feet of this, the government reserve. The reserve, the fence extended over, look here.”
Mohamed then pointed toward the scale of the development.
“This is gonna be a big property. Nice beautiful fence. The President, he’s living back that side.”
He described the fencing as extraordinary in size.
“Massive fence. This is like the Great Wall of China, the fence. Yes, a lot of lights here.”
He repeatedly questioned who owned the property.
“This is a beautiful property. I wonder this property belongs to who?”
The presentation showed Mohamed walking through the area and highlighting what he said were questions about the fence, the property, construction and possible occupation of state reserve.
Those claims have not been independently established. In particular, there has been no confirmed finding that government reserve was unlawfully enclosed or that the construction was unauthorised.
But Mohamed was clear about how he interpreted the earlier police intervention.
He said:
“So we were here earlier today. This is why they arrest me. They don’t want me to expose corruption.”
He also addressed drone restrictions around the President’s residence.
“Drones cannot fly where the president is living. Just want you to understand this. It’s a no-fly zone. It is a no-fly zone.”
Mohamed said he had spent only a short time at the location earlier in the day.
“So I was at this exact spot today, right here. I spent not more than eight minutes.”
Then there was another confrontation with police.
Mohamed was arrested a second time later that night and taken back to the Leonora Police Station after he was reportedly showing several people the area connected to his earlier detention during a Facebook Live broadcast. Police told him he was being detained over an alleged breach of security protocol and instructed him to end the broadcast.
He was subsequently released again on self-bail.
The Guyana Civil Aviation Authority has said several unregistered drones were reportedly found among occupants of vehicles in the area and warned that unauthorised drone operations in restricted or prohibited airspace are illegal and may constitute a criminal offence.
The police investigation remains ongoing.
The significance of the episode now extends beyond the drone investigation.
Mohamed says his earlier presence in the area was part of an effort to examine questions surrounding a major property development, its fencing and alleged encroachment on state reserve. Police, meanwhile, are investigating alleged security violations involving drone activity near the President’s home.
The unanswered questions are therefore substantial: Who owns the property Mohamed was examining? Does any portion of the fence occupy government reserve? Was the fencing authorised? What construction is taking place? Was a drone actually operated in restricted airspace, and who was responsible? And on what basis was Mohamed arrested a second time while showing the area to the public?
The available facts establish that Mohamed was detained twice on Thursday and released both times without a reported charge against him in connection with the incident. The drone investigation continues.
For Mohamed, however, the political explanation remains blunt.
After his first arrest, he returned to the site, walked viewers through the area and explained what he said he had been investigating.
His conclusion was unmistakable:
“This is why they arrested me. They don’t want me to expose corruption.”
Whether that allegation is ultimately supported by evidence remains to be determined. But the sequence of events — a site inspection, a first arrest, release, a public presentation about the site, and a second arrest the same night — has turned the Leonora episode into a wider test of transparency, police conduct and the boundaries of opposition activity around the President’s residence.
