GRA asks High Court to suspend Lamborghini case against Azruddin Mohamed pending outcome of criminal case

Last Updated on Thursday, 11 September 2025, 22:49 by Writer

The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has asked the High Court to suspend a civil case involving businessman Azruddin Mohamed’s alleged evasion of taxes on a Lamborghini luxury car that he imported in December 2020, until a magistrate rules on a criminal case on the same accusation.

Through its battery of lawyers, the tax agency wants Justice Gino Persaud to order that the High Court proceedings be stayed and that there be no determination of the issues in that matter related to Mr Mohamed’s Lamborghini Aventador SVJ Roadster pending the hearing and determination of the criminal charges that were instituted on May 15, 2025.

“There is a serious risk of inconsistent findings by the High Court and the criminal court which apart from being undesirable, can bring the administration of justice into disrepute,” the GRA’s lawyers say.

The GRA said the Applicant is obliged to deploy the arguments raised as part of his defence in the criminal courts. His contention that he purchased the Lamborghini Roadster SVJ for US$75,000.00 and paid the correct amount of duties in the sum of GY$48,968,035.00 is obviously – the crux of his defence. “It will therefore be an abuse of process for the Applicant to, in effect, litigate his criminal defence in this claim for judicial review,” the tax agency also said.

Mr Mohamed was charged with causing to be made and subscribing a false declaration to the GRA and knowingly concerning in fraudulent evasion in violation of the Customs Act.

However, Mr Mohamed, through his lawyer, says his applicatipn for judicial review seeks to challenge for unreasonableness, arbitrariness, etc the vires of the GRA’s decisions taken in March, 2025 to impose over $420,000,000 in taxes against him and their decisions to seize three vehicles. “The evidence to be considered in each case is substantially different,” Mr Mohamed says.

“The abovementioned evidence intended to be led in the criminal proceedings are not relevant in the present judicial review proceedings and even if they were, the two courts are concerned with clearly distinct and disparate subject matters, causes of action, purposes and orders sought.

I am advised by counsel and do verily believe that the Respondents may not seek to rely on their belated filing of criminal charges to forestall or ‘delay the inevitable ruling’ in civil proceedings, such would be an abuse of process,” Mr Mohamed said.

The grounds for this application include the fact that the High Court Judge had refused to accept evidence from the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry and the United States’ Department of Justice documents and other pertinent lately received documents admitted into the evidence of the court.

The GRA notes that Justice Persaud’s decision was appealed by the respondents on June 5, 2025 and that is yet to be heard and determined. The GRA said Justice Persaud has also fixed September 15 for his ruling on the Judicial Review matter.

Mr Mohamed was charged after the GRA said it received information from the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI) and the U.S.’ Department of Justice showing that he had transferred separately amounts totalling US$695,000 to International Speed Consulting. The GRA said US$75,300 was one of the amounts transferred specifically for the payment of the car. By its calculation, GRA said Mr Mohamed should pay GY$420 million in taxes.

“While the purposes of the payments stated on the invoices were not for the sale of the Lamborghini, the dates of the transactions and the parties to the transactions correspond with the dates and parties of the sale of the Lamborghini,” the GRA said.