​US Grants Permanent Residency to Fugitive Ex-Ghana Finance Minister

​ACCRA — In a dramatic development that threatens to complicate Ghana’s ongoing anti-corruption campaign, a United States immigration court has granted permanent residency to Ghana’s embattled former Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.

​The decision, announced Tuesday, June 16, by his legal team, arrives months after the 66-year-old was arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) following the revocation of his visa. It marks a critical turning point in a high-stakes legal tug-of-war that spans across two continents.

​The Defense Claims Victory

​Ofori-Atta’s attorney, Justice Kusi-Minkah Premo, confirmed that the court approved his client’s I-485 adjustment of status petition. According to Premo, the US court reviewed evidence regarding the actions taken by Ghana’s Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) and ultimately found the multi-million dollar corruption allegations lacking backbone.

​”The Court finds the criminal charges in Ghana not credible,” Premo stated on Tuesday, though he carefully clarified that the ruling primarily hinged on whether Ofori-Atta satisfied standard statutory immigration requirements rather than an absolute determination of criminal guilt or innocence.

​Ofori-Atta originally traveled to the United States in January 2025 to undergo specialized medical treatment, including surgery for prostate cancer. However, his stay turned into a legal quagmire. In February 2025, the OSP declared him a fugitive from justice, followed by an Interpol Red Notice in June 2025. By January 2026, ICE agents detained him when he attempted to extend his stay on an expired, revoked visitor visa.

​OSP Fires Back: ‘Extradition Still on the Table’

​The backlash from Accra was immediate. Hours after the defense team’s announcement, the Office of the Special Prosecutor issued a sharp rebuttal, clarifying that it was completely uninvolved in the US immigration proceedings and that Ofori-Atta’s new Green Card does not grant him immunity from prosecution.

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​According to the OSP, the former minister remains a citizen of Ghana and is subject to active extradition proceedings being executed via the Attorney-General. The OSP emphasized that the documentation for his extradition is handled by entirely separate judicial bodies in the United States.

​”The credibility or otherwise of the criminal charges against Mr. Ofori-Atta would be determined by the courts in Ghana, who have jurisdiction to determine his guilt or innocence,” the OSP statement read, dismissing the notion that a US immigration judge could clear him of local criminal liability.

​A Sprawling 78-Charge Case

​Ofori-Atta served as Ghana’s Finance Minister from 2017 to 2024 under former President Nana Akufo-Addo, where he steered major macroeconomic shifts, including heavily criticized domestic tax reforms and multi-billion dollar bailout negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

​Following the transition of power to President John Mahama’s administration, the state launched a expansive anti-corruption net. In November 2025, authorities formally slammed Ofori-Atta with a staggering 78-charge corruption case.

​The allegations against him stem from a web of controversial state transactions scrutinized by the OSP, including:

• ​The Strategic Mobilisation-GRA tax audit contract.

• ​The controversial termination of the ECG-BXC electricity contract.

• ​Millions of dollars in state payments toward the disputed National Cathedral project.

• ​Irregularities tied to an ambulance procurement contract.

• ​The suspected misappropriation of the state’s Tax Refund Account.

​While the Mahama administration frames the prosecution as a transparent mechanism for state accountability, opposition critics and Ofori-Atta’s loyalists have fiercely decried the charges as a politically motivated witch-hunt aimed at dismantling the legacy of the previous government.

​While the green card ensures Ofori-Atta cannot be summarily deported by ICE for visa violations, all eyes now turn to the US federal courts, where Ghana’s formal extradition request will face its true test.