Ofori-Atta to Face U.S. Immigration Court on January 20 – Attorney-General
Ghana’s former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is set to face a U.S. immigration judge on January 20, 2026, after his arrest for overstaying his visa, the Attorney-General confirms.
Ghana’s former Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, is scheduled to appear before a United States immigration judge on January 20, 2026, following his arrest for overstaying in the country, the Attorney-General, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has revealed. Dr. Ayine explained that the U.S. Department of State revoked Mr. Ofori-Atta’s B1/B2 visa and gave him until November 29, 2025, to leave the United States. However, he failed to comply with the directive.
The Attorney-General clarified that Mr. Ofori-Atta’s appearance before an immigration judge is not part of an extradition process but a separate immigration matter under U.S. law. Mr. Ofori-Atta travelled to the United States on January 4, 2025, for medical treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. On the morning of January 6, 2026, he was arrested in Washington, D.C., by officers of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Before his arrest, Ghana’s Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) had declared him a fugitive of justice in connection with corruption and corruption-related offences.
He, Strategic Mobilisation Limited—a revenue assurance firm—and six others face 78 counts of alleged procurement breaches and causing a financial loss of GH¢1.4 billion to the state. The case is currently before a High Court in Accra. According to available accounts, Mr. Ofori-Atta was apprehended outside the Westlight apartment complex in Washington, D.C., where he had been residing. ICE agents reportedly surrounded him as he exited the luxury building, escorted him into a vehicle, and transported him to a detention facility. He was taken to the Caroline Detention Facility in Virginia, approximately 89 miles from the location of his arrest.
The Westlight building, located at 1111 24th Street NW in the affluent West End neighbourhood, is less than a mile from the White House and is known for its high security and elite residents. Sources indicate that Mr. Ofori-Atta lived there with his wife and son.
Mr. Ofori-Atta holds a Ghanaian passport with valid visas for the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. His U.S. visa is due to expire on February 14, 2026, while his UK and Canadian visas remain valid until 2032 and 2031 respectively. Meanwhile, the Deputy Attorney-General, Dr. Justice Edem Srem-Sai, disclosed on TV3’s KeyPoints that Mr. Ofori-Atta has declined diplomatic assistance from Ghana’s mission in Washington, D.C. “Currently, the Ghana Embassy in Washington, D.C., is attempting to assist the former Finance Minister while he is in detention, but he is refusing to cooperate with the mission in efforts to secure his release from the detention centre,” Dr. Srem-Sai said. He added that the government is determined to have Mr. Ofori-Atta returned to Ghana to face justice, noting that security agencies are exploring alternative options for his deportation.
“The fact that a law enforcement agency like ICE has arrested and detained him indicates that there is some form of illegality involved. ICE does not act on purely civil matters,” he stated. Optimize SEO title for me, make it on page SEO and add tag to it
