The Court of Appeal of Guyana dismisses an application by Brazilian businessman Sebastiao De Oliveira and Moura Gago Gold Incorporated seeking leave to appeal a prior Full Court ruling. The applicants challenge SOCU’s legal authority to initiate court proceedings under Guyana’s Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Act, which is linked to actions to detain assets.
Multiple outlets report that the Court of Appeal upholds the decision that SOCU has legal standing to bring proceedings for asset detention under the AML/CFT framework. The ruling is described as affirming SOCU’s capacity to pursue forfeiture or detention steps in court, following SOCU’s seizure of items that include gold and cash. In its decision, the Court of Appeal rejects the attempt to overturn the Full Court’s finding on SOCU’s authority.
Overall, the case proceeds with the appellate decision maintaining the legal basis for SOCU-led asset detention actions under the AML/CFT Act, while the applicants’ bid to seek further appeal is denied.
