Ofori-Atta Fights Back: Lawyers for Ghana’s Ex-Finance Minister Move To Challenge ICE Detention
- Ken Ofori-Atta has been detained by US immigration authorities over issues with his immigration status
- His legal teams in both Ghana and the US have initiated court processes to challenge the detention
- Ghana’s Ambassador to the US said ICE has declared Ofori-Atta medically fit to remain in detention
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Lawyers for Ghana's former Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, have reportedly initiated legal processes to fight his detention in the US by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
This was disclosed by a representative of the former finance minister's legal team, Frank Davies.
Source: Getty Images
Speaking in an interview with Joy News on Saturday, January 10, 2026, Frank Davies disclosed that his client is currently in the custody of ICE.
He added that his local legal team is collaborating with his lawyers in the US to challenge the detention in court.
He stated that the legal processes have already been filed, with the hearing scheduled for the coming weeks in January 2026.
“The lawyers in America have filed a process in court. A process has been filed in court to challenge his custody in ICE detention. That process would be heard later this month,” he was reportedly to have said in a Ghanaweb report.
“That's why we are here as his lawyers, because we are collaborating with American lawyers,” he added.
Why was Ken Ofori-Atta detained by ICE?
Ken Ofori-Atta was detained by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Monday, January 5, 2026, over immigration status issues.
Ofori-Atta's lawyers confirmed on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, that their client had been detained at the Caroline Detention Centre by ICE officials.
In a signed statement issued on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, the lawyers explained that the detention was a result of challenges regarding the status of Ofori-Atta’s continued stay in the US.
“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.”
Source: Getty Images
ICE declares Ofori-Atta medically fit for detention
The former finance minister allegedly fled Ghana between January 2 and 4, 2025, following the defeat of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the December 7, 2024, elections.
He is said to have relocated to the US on health grounds amid controversy over his involvement in alleged corruption under the Akufo-Addo administration.
However, Ghana’s Ambassador to the US, Victor Smith, has disclosed that the former finance minister was declared medically fit to be held in a detention centre before he was detained.
According to Ambassador Smith, ICE arranged for medical personnel to assess Ofori-Atta shortly after his arrest. He added that the assessment was conducted by medical professionals attached to the detention facility, not by ICE officers.
“Yes, the ICE people confirmed that he was all right. Initially, they had medical people to determine whether he was fit to be held in the detention centre, and they were convinced and were assured that he was okay,” he said in an interview with Joy News.
Smith also said ICE explained that detainees with serious medical conditions are usually referred to external medical facilities rather than kept in detention centres.
Inside the ICE facility holding Ofori-Atta
Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported that Ken Ofori-Atta was held at the Caroline Detention Centre, a repurposed jail in Virginia, US.
The facility houses 120 detainees with criminal records and can accommodate up to 336 people.
Photos of the Caroline Detention Centre reemerged on social media, sparking reactions from Ghanaians.
Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
