Ken Ofori-Atta Detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Over Visa Status
- Former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has been detained by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement over immigration status issues
- He is in the US on health grounds amid controversy over his involvement in alleged corruption under the Akufo-Addo administration
- The government is currently trying to extradite Ofori-Atta from the US to Ghana to face prosecution for alleged instances of corruption
The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has detained former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.
Ofori-Atta's lawyers confirmed the detention in a public notice and sought to downplay deportation concerns.
Source: Getty Images
The statement said his US legal team was 'working frantically' to have him released.
In the notice issued on January 7 and signed by Justice Kusi-Minkah Premo, the lawyers noted that the detention resulted from challenges regarding the status of Ofori-Atta’s continued stay in the US.
In the statement published by Asaase News, the lawyers said:
“The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as of yesterday, detained the former Minister for Finance, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, regarding the status of his current stay in the United States. His US legal team is in contact with ICE and expects the matter to be resolved expeditiously."
“Mr Ofori-Atta has a pending petition for adjustment of status, which authorises a person to stay in the US legally past the period of validity of their visa. Under US law, a change of status by this method is common."
There are currently attempts to extradite Ofori-Atta from the overseas nation to face prosecution for alleged corruption.
The Special Prosecutor is leading efforts to extradite him from the US, as he is being investigated for alleged corruption in five different cases.
The former minister was formally charged by the special prosecutor on November 18 in the Strategic Mobilisation Ghana scandal and is currently fighting to have an INTERPOL red notice removed.
In a statement on Facebook, the special prosecutor noted that the notice had been redacted from public view because of a challenge from Ofori-Atta being assessed.
Timeline of Ofori-Atta's time as a suspect
On January 24, 2025, the Special Prosecutor formally notified Ofori-Atta that he was a suspect in the five cases and directed him to appear in person on February 10, 2025.
On January 31, 2025, the former minister's lawyers informed the special prosecutor that he would be outside Ghana indefinitely for medical reasons but offered to represent him in his absence.
On February 5, 2025, the Special Prosecutor rejected a claim of indefinite absence and demanded a reasonable return date by February 10, 2025, warning of legal consequences for non-compliance and clarifying that lawyers cannot answer criminal charges on behalf of their clients.
On February 10, 2025, Ofori-Atta's lawyers submitted a doctor’s note stating he was undergoing tests and possibly surgery in the US, with no clear return date, with the OSP receiving this document with scepticism.
On February 12, 2025, the Special Prosecutor declared Ofori-Atta a fugitive from justice, acting on an arrest warrant.
On February 18, 2025, Ofori-Atta appealed to the special prosecutor to remove his name from the wanted list and pledged to return to Ghana in May, with the special prosecutor subsequently removing his name from the list following the assurance.
Following this, Agyebeng gave a deadline of June 2, 2025, for Ofori-Atta to report in person to the Office of the Special Prosecutor headquarters or face being declared wanted again.
On March 16, 2025, Ofori-Atta sued the Office of the Special Prosecutor, seeking compensation for being declared wanted.
Source: UGC
On May 28, 2025, the court adjourned Ofori-Atta's attempt to keep the special prosecutor from declaring him wanted. The case was adjourned to June 18.
On June 2, 2025, Ofori-Atta failed to appear before the special prosecutor and was subsequently declared wanted again.
In October 2025, the Commission for the Control of INTERPOL’s Files notified Ghanaian authorities that Ofori-Atta, who is currently in the US, had applied to have his name removed from the red notice.
On November 18, Ofori-Atta was formally charged by the special prosecutor in the Strategic Mobilisation Ghana scandal.
Ofori-Atta's US lawyer cries foul
YEN.com.gh reported that Enayat Qasimi, the US-based lawyer representing Ghana's former Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, spoke for the first time late in 2025.
In an interview with the BBC, he claimed that the case involving the Ghana Revenue Authority and Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited was politically motivated.
Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
