The extradition of the 16 persons the United States government plans to request could take up to two years if the persons involved use all the various legal avenues available to them to challenge it.
Legal observers have explained to Stabroek News that before warrants are issued for their arrests, the home affairs minister must satisfy himself that the grounds on which their extraditions are being requested constitute grounds for an offence, if the acts alleged were committed in Guyana.
If this is so, the minister will then authorise the magistrate to proceed with hearing the grounds presented by the US authorities for their extradition. Stabroek News understands that these grounds are traditionally presented to the court by counsel from the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions, but there is nothing which prevents the Attorney General or a representative of his chambers from doing so.
The observers say the extradition hearings are dealt with in the normal manner and do not usually require the appointment of a special magistrate. However, in the event that the US requests is for the anticipated number then a special magistrate could be appointed or the magistrate assigned in the normal manner would be asked to hear them from day to day.
In the event that the magistrate finds, after hearing the facts presented, that there are grounds for extradition, the persons to be extradited could then apply to a High Court judge for a writ of habeas corpus and the speed with which this application is heard would depend on the speed with which the Memorandum of Reasons is prepared by the magistrate.
If the application is denied by the judge the persons could then approach the Court of Appeal and hearing of the appeal would then be dependent on the speed with the High Court record including the written decision of the judge is prepared.
Garfield Sobers was the last person extradited from Guyana to the United States of America at the request of the US government to face charges for drug related offences committed in the US. That process took about two years including the hearing of the various applications and appeals Sobers filed.
Last week, US government authorities called on Attorney General Doodnauth Singh SC to ascertain the extradition of some 16 persons to stand trial for a number of drug-related offences.
The call on Singh followed a number of arrests made by the US Drug Enforcement Agency and the New York District Attorney's Office of number of Guyanese in Brooklyn and Queens New York for drug-related and money-laundering offences. Stabroek News understands that the extradition requests will be for those persons identified as a result of phone taps on conversations between persons cooperating with the US authorities and those involved in the export of cocaine and money-laundering activities in Guyana.