By Enyichukwu Enemanna
A former Finance Minister in Ghana who is wanted at home in connection with corruption allegations, has been detained by US authorities over issues related to his immigration status, his lawyers say.
Ken Ofori-Atta left Ghana last year for medical reasons, his legal team said.
Accra had earlier requested for Ofori-Atta’s extradition, but his lawyers are challenging it, saying the allegations against him are politically motivated.
In confirming his detention by US authorities on Wednesday, his legal team said they expected the matter to be resolved “expeditiously”.
Ofori-Atta’s lawyers in a statement said their client was “law-abiding” and was in the process of applying to change his immigration status allowing him to stay in the US “past the period of validity of his visa”.
Back home, the former minister faces dozens of charges relating to his time in office under the previous administration, including conspiracy to commit procurement fraud and causing financial loss to the state.
Last February, prosecutors in Ghana declared him a fugitive, alleging that he was trying to evade investigators. This status was withdrawn when his legal team said he intended to return.
He was finance minister from January 2017 to February 2024, when the New Patriotic Party was in power.
The party lost the December 2024 elections, after which John Mahama from the National Democratic Congress became president, pledging to crack down on corruption.
Ghana enjoys warm relations with the US, and the two countries have collaborated on repatriating West African nationals.
Accra however denounced US actions in Venezuela, which it called an “invasion”, describing the seizure of its leader Nicolás Maduro as an “abduction”.
