Deputy Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Justice Srem Sai, has disclosed that former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta will be arrested immediately upon his arrival in Ghana.
Speaking on TV3’s The Key Points programme on Saturday, January 10, Dr Sai made the statement in response to a question from lawyer and social commentator Kofi Bentil, who inquired whether Ofori-Atta would be detained if he returns to the country.
“Ken Ofori-Atta will be arrested upon entry,” Dr Sai affirmed. “He will then be taken through the process and granted bail etc.”
The Deputy Attorney-General also suggested that Ofori-Atta’s return to Ghana could happen sooner than anticipated, following his recent detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
Dr Sai revealed that Ghana’s Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General’s Department played a key role in the events leading to Ofori-Atta’s U.S. detention, collaborating closely with American law enforcement agencies.
“We are keenly involved in this matter. We collaborate with law enforcement agencies in this matter,” he explained on the show.
He further clarified that Ofori-Atta’s U.S. visa was revoked in June 2025, contradicting reports that it had simply expired. “Eyes [ICE] will not come for you unless you have visa issues; that is what has happened,” Dr Sai stated. “June 2025, his visa was revoked; it’s not an expiration of the visa. The information we have is that his visa was revoked. So he has been living in America without a visa.”
Ofori-Atta, 66, was detained by ICE on January 6, 2026, over concerns related to his immigration status while in the U.S. for medical treatment, including surgery for prostate cancer. He has been held at the Caroline Detention Facility in Bowling Green, Virginia.
In a public notice issued by his Ghanaian lawyers, Menka-Premo, Osei-Bonsu, Bruce-Cathline and Partners, on January 7, 2026, it was stated that Ofori-Atta has a pending petition for adjustment of status, which allows for a legal stay beyond the visa’s validity period under U.S. law.
“Mr. Ofori-Atta has a pending petition for adjustment of status, which authorizes a person to stay in the US legally past the period of validity of their visa. Under US law, a change of status by this method is common,” the notice read.
It added that he is fully cooperating with ICE and that the matter is expected to be resolved expeditiously. “The Public is therefore advised to note that Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta as a law-abiding person is fully cooperating with ICE to have this issue resolved,” the lawyers said.
Ofori-Atta, who served as Finance Minister from 2017 to 2024 under President Nana Akufo-Addo, left Ghana in early 2025 for health reasons. He was declared wanted by the Office of the Special Prosecutor in February 2025 on corruption allegations, including those related to the SML Deal and the National Cathedral project, facing 78 counts alongside other accused individuals.