PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – A magistrate court has approved the extradition of a 36-year-old former United States Marine officer, who is wanted on a number of alleged sex crimes in the North American country.
Acting Chief Magistrate, Christine Charles, said she is satisfied the US had met the requirements set out under the Extradition (Commonwealth and Foreign Territories) Act for the extradition of Farzan Mohammed, who was arrested on a provisional warrant on April 9.
Mohammed was committed into custody pending his extradition and advised of his right to apply for habeas corpus by October 3.
The magistrate dismissed Mohammed’s arguments against his extradition with the attorneys for the US saying all the statutory requirements had been met and the record case was admitted into evidence without objection.
Senior Counsel Ravi Rajcoomar, who led a three-member team, said Mohammed’s identification, in the form of a US and Trinidad and Tobago passport, as well as a Florida driver’s licence, was not challenged at the extradition trial.
The US also supplied fingerprint evidence to convince the court Mohammed was the fugitive being sought in Philadelphia.
Mohammed had been arrested in Diamond Village, near San Fernando, south of here and taken to his home in Princes Town, where a search warrant was executed, his attorneys said in a pre-action protocol letter.
Mohammed is accused of trafficking a child, sexual penetration of a child, sexual touching, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity by making promises of payment and gifts, sexual gratification by causing a child to watch pornographic photographs and videos; engaging in child pornography by making the 16-year-old make pornographic videos; and exposing a child to pornography, among other related charges. The alleged incidents took place between 2022 and 2023.
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