Businessman charged with fraud in US elected Guyana opposition leader

By Kemol King

GEORGETOWN, ⁠Jan 26 (Reuters) - ⁠Guyana ‍opposition lawmakers on Monday elected businessman and newly minted politician Azruddin Mohamed ‍as their leader, even as he fights extradition ​to the U.S. on fraud and corruption charges.

U.S. prosecutors ​allege Mohamed and his father Nazar conspired to commit fraud and launder money through their gold exporting firm, Mohamed’s ​Enterprise, to enrich themselves and defraud the government of Guyana.

The men, who were indicted ​in Florida but deny wrongdoing, were briefly detained in October. ‌They are contesting the extradition proceedings in court.

“The process was very smooth. No hiccups. ​No delay. In less ⁠than five minutes, I was elected leader of the opposition, ready to ‌serve the people of this country,” Mohamed told journalists after the vote.

His political party, We Invest in ‌Nationhood, is less than a year old but became the ‌top opposition force in parliament in September's election, winning 16 of 65 seats.

The Guyanese government, which Mohamed has ‍accused of persecuting him because of his entry into politics, has said ⁠making him opposition leader could taint the legislature. Mohamed's position does not grant him immunity from extradition.

(Reporting by Kemol King; Editing by Julia Symmes Cobb and Kevin Liffey)

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