Declaring that he is not involved in any `scampish’ business, businessman Nazar ‘Shell’ Mohamed has secured the Washington DC public relations and lobbying firm, Barbour Griffith & Rogers [BGR], to investigate why he has been blocked for more than a decade from securing a US non-immigrant visa.
Mohamed, who is preparing to make another non-immigrant visa petition to the United States embassy here says that his character is beyond reproach.
Lead investigator and retired Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Acting Assistant Director of its Inspection Division, Tom Locke, says that at the behest of Mohamed, a report was submitted to the US State Department and the US Embassy in Guyana, and Locke says he believes that Mohamed will get his visa back.
“The purpose of the investigation was to assist Mr Mohamed with his visa (application process). He had applied for a US visa and was put into what they call Administrative Processing, which means that there were some things that they were waiting for more information on. And as you may be aware, there have been a number of allegations made against Mr. Mohamed over the years. And I was hired to take a look at those allegations and bring forth any of the evidence for or against them,” Locke told Stabroek News in an interview yesterday at the Marriott Hotel.
“I told Mr Mohamed; I said, look, you know, I’m fine with doing this investigation, I said, but if I come up with something that I find troubling, I’m going to have to report it as I see it. And he agreed and so I did the investigation, and this is the result of it. And what we’re hoping is that the US State Department will take a look at this information that would satisfy them, so that he can get a visa and come the United States. [Before] he had been coming to the United States …he hasn’t applied for a visa since then. He’s never been turned down for a visa. And certainly when he had a visa, he obeyed all the rules, came and went as he was supposed to. He never overstayed his visa or anything like that. And… I found him to be very much a rule follower,” Locke added.
But the 70-year-old Mohamed told Stabroek News that hiring the public relations and lobbying firm was not about obtaining his visa only, but to also show the public that he has nothing to hide, having come from humble beginnings and legitimately building his business through currency trading, real estate, gold mining and trading. He said that after decades of hard work, he could not no longer sit aside and have his competitors bring his character into disrepute in his old age, having noticed that rumours surrounding his businesses had begun escalating. For over 50 years, Mohamed said that he worked tirelessly. “I worked very hard. I started suitcase trading…building from that I went into business and bought one place then another…then into currency trading, gold mining and buying…,” he said while emphasizing that while people now see the wealth he created, many are not aware of the hard labour he put in to build his companies to what they are today.
“My work is legitimate. I never was involved in drug dealings, robbed anybody, gold smuggling and any ‘scampish’ business,” he added while pointing out that from feedback, it seemed that particular business competitors were targeting him and had set “a poison pen” path to shame him. He informed that he had been traveling to the United States before the terror attacks of 9/11 and even traveled after. When his visa expired and he applied again and was told of the administrative processing, he surmised that after the attacks, visa restrictions got tougher for Muslims so he had to allow for the due diligence process and did not press the issue. That twice within the last 10 years he got the same response from the US Embassy that his visa was under administrative processing left him perplexed. And coupled with rumours here that he could not travel because he was blacklisted and wanting to travel now that he has more leisure time, he said that he began researching how the visa issue could be addressed. He said that he researched companies to help and hired an immigration lawyer who is currently looking at his case.
Mohamed said that he also approached the Guyana Consulate in Washington and told them that findings from his research had left him with four companies to help. He said that BGR was recommended and Locke was assigned by BGR to his case. He told him that if anything untoward was found, they would have no choice but to report as is. Sources close to Mohamed said that “the last straw” for the businessman was after his son Azruddin’s Ferrari was held by US customs and rumours swirled that it was because he was being investigated for a series of crimes. Azruddin had said that his vehicle was “inexplicably detained” on the grounds of allegations made to foreign law enforcement about himself, family, and company but was released, following court proceedings. He also said allegations ranging from drug trafficking, assassinations and illegal gun trade, to money laundering, financing of terrorism and purchasing gold from Venezuela (a blacklisted country), were levelled against him by a competing gold trader.
Only Nazar Mohamed
Locke said that while he understands that some persons here might say that only a positive report would come from a person paying a firm to investigate them, his career, name and reputation are among things that he would not risk for any client. He made clear that while he investigated some of Mohamed’s family, the report focuses only on Nazar Mohamed and no other member of the Mohamed family. He emphasized that as an American citizen and former Bureau officer who now works for a company that serves hundreds of companies, he had to make his position known that he would investigate independently and the findings will be known, whatever they were. “I am not going to whitewash the investigation. Based on my background and my reputation I am not going to put something with my name on it that is going to be going to an official US government agency unless I am fully satisfied,” Locke contended. “I have investigated portions of his family but this [report] concerns just Mr. Mohamed. Everything is just Nazar Mohamed,” he added.
Locke gave a synopsis of his findings which he said found that “Nazar Mohamed is a true rags-to-riches story” but that false accusations and rumours by persons known to the businessman have negatively impacted him. “From humble beginnings, he is now one of Guyana’s most successful business executives. He is a gold trader and has businesses in currency exchange, jewellery, clothing, real estate and energy. Despite Mr Mohamed’s many achievements, he and his family have been prevented from obtaining a visa to the U.S. because of false accusations made against him. They range from the fantastical, such as buying gold illegally from Venezuela, gunrunning, and drug dealing to the completely outrageous, such as terrorist financing and murder. Some of these fake stories have made it into the public press.
“In March 2021, Ricardo Fagundes, also known as “Paper Shorts” was gunned down in front of the Palm Court in Georgetown. News accounts described Fagundes as a “gold dealer and biker.” Allegations were made by a detective that the murder was carried out by an employee of Mr. Mohamed and that the investigation had covered up for the businessman after a large bribe had been paid. An independent inquiry into this matter uncovered: Mr. Mohamed has not been investigated in connection with any crime, nor has he been arrested or charged with a violation of any sort,” it added. “…Allegations made regarding the “Paper Shorts” murder fell apart when the detective making them was arrested where illegal drugs were found by a Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit. Mr. Mohamed also provided a time-stamped video showing the employee who was accused of the murder was at work elsewhere when the murder took place. An independent investigation by the Regional Security System confirmed that there was no evidence of corrupt practices or an attempt to cover up the probe.”
The BRG investigation stated that it also established that Mohamed is licensed by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission and the Guyana Gold Board and submits daily, weekly, bi-weekly and monthly reports as required to the Gold Board, Bank of Guyana, the Financial Intelligence Unit and the Guyana Extraction Industries Transparency Initiative. “All his records are open to inspection,” the company said.
Vetted
Mohamed, according to BGR, has been vetted by all of the groups and businesses with whom he has done business, including ExxonMobil, Halliburton, Champion X, Stena Drilling, Peterson Energy Logistics, Aramco and Baker Hughes. “All have stringent written guidelines governing their relationship with individuals such as Mr. Mohamed,” it stated. Other findings of the independent inquiry, are that, “Mr. Mohamed has accounts with all of the banks in Guyana. To open these accounts, he was required to undergo and pass Know Your Customer (KYC) inquiries to comply with U.S. KYC guidance and regulations. All relatives, friends, employees, business associates and government officials interviewed lauded Mr. Mohamed as a person and as an executive. None believed the allegations against him and his family. Mr. Mohamed began his professional life as a Guyanese civil servant. This speaks to the narrative for him as successful yet humble and dedicated to service.”
It continues, “Mr. Mohamed has been issued numerous US visas in the past decades, has traveled to the US many times, and has never violated the rules.
BRG’s website informed that it has offices in Washington, Austin, and London, and extensive business relationships around the world. “The bipartisan firm’s clients include Fortune 500 companies, foreign governments, trade associations, non-profit organizations, academic institutions, hospitals and coalitions. When executives, industry representatives and government leaders seek strategic partners for their most important challenges, they turn to a trusted partner: BGR,” the website states.
