Former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has been detained by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over concerns regarding his visa status, according to a confirmation from his legal team.
In a statement released on the matter, Mr Ofori-Atta is said to be fully cooperating with ICE authorities as his lawyers work to resolve the issue promptly.
The statement clarified that Mr Ofori-Atta has a pending petition for adjustment of status, a standard U.S. immigration process that permits an individual to maintain legal presence in the country after the expiration of an initial visa.
His legal representatives described this as a routine procedure and anticipate a swift resolution.
The detention occurs amid ongoing serious health issues that have kept the former minister in the United States since January 2025.
Mr Ofori-Atta has been receiving treatment for prostate cancer, diagnosed in March 2025 following MRI scans and a biopsy indicating cancer progression.
He underwent a radical prostatectomy on Friday, June 13, 2025, at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, which doctors deemed essential due to the spread of cancer cells.
Family sources indicate he had been under medical care and monitoring in the U.S. for several weeks prior to the surgery.
Additionally, Mr Ofori-Atta has been managing post-COVID Multi-System Inflammatory Response Syndrome, first diagnosed in February 2021, requiring continuous medical supervision.
Mr Ofori-Atta served as Ghana’s Finance Minister from 2017 to 2023, managing the economy through challenges including the COVID-19 pandemic, debt crises, and IMF negotiations.
His extended stay in the U.S. also aligns with legal proceedings in Ghana, where in November 2025, the Office of the Special Prosecutor charged him and others with corruption and related offenses. The case is currently in the case management conference phase.
The statement emphasized that Mr Ofori-Atta is a law-abiding citizen committed to regularizing his status with U.S. immigration while focusing on his recovery.
