The United States formally gave former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta until November 29, 2024, to leave the country before revoking his visa, contradicting public claims that he merely overstayed his permitted stay.
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, who disclosed this while speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, insisted that Ofori-Atta’s loss of immigration status was the result of a deliberate visa revocation by U.S. authorities.
“I want Ghanaians to know that he just didn’t overstay his visa. The visa was actually revoked. They gave him until November 29 of 2024, to leave the United States. He did not,” Dr Ayine said.
The Attorney-General stressed that the issue was not an expired visa, describing contrary claims as inaccurate.
Also read: Ofori-Atta rejected Ghana Embassy legal support after ICE arrest – Justice Srem Sai
“This is not exactly about immigration. His visa has not expired. It expires in February. No, it was revoked. I am telling you this on authority,” he stated.
He said the revocation was formally communicated and directly affected Ofori-Atta’s legal standing in the United States.
Dr Ayine revealed that the visa revocation followed sustained engagement between Ghanaian authorities and their U.S. counterparts, linked to an extradition request initiated by his office.
“The extradition request that I sent was in respect of the OSP — the SML matter. I have been working with the Americans diligently on him. And the visa was revoked,” he said.
He explained that the revocation resulted in Ofori-Atta losing lawful immigration status, leading to subsequent enforcement action by U.S. authorities.
Ken Ofori-Atta, 66, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on January 6, 2026, in Washington, DC, following concerns about his immigration status.
He is currently being held at the Caroline Detention Facility in Bowling Green, Virginia, while immigration and legal processes continue.
Meanwhile, Deputy Attorney-General Dr Justice Srem Sai has disclosed that Ofori-Atta repeatedly rejected diplomatic and consular assistance offered by Ghana’s Embassy in the United States following his detention.
Speaking on TV3’s Key Points on Saturday, January 10, Dr Sai said Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, made several attempts to visit the former finance minister and extend state support.
He said, “The ambassador has been making efforts to go and visit him and offer him the necessary support that a citizen is entitled to in such situations. Unfortunately, he seemed to have refused every effort that such assistance.”
Dr Sai stressed that the government’s intervention was driven by constitutional duty, not politics, noting that Ofori-Atta’s former position as a senior public official placed an obligation on the state to offer assistance.
He added that the assistance declined included practical support beyond routine consular engagement.