Ken Ofori-Atta held by US immigration as lawyers move to regularise stay
In a statement, his team said Mr Ofori-Atta is “fully cooperating” with US authorities while discussions continue with ICE to resolve the matter.
Former Ghanaian Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over issues relating to his immigration status, his legal representatives have confirmed.
In a statement, his team said Mr Ofori-Atta is “fully cooperating” with US authorities while discussions continue with ICE to resolve the matter.
They explained that the former minister has an active petition for an adjustment of status – a process under US immigration law that enables a person already in the country to change to a different lawful status without leaving the US.
His lawyers described the procedure as routine and said they were confident the issue would be concluded swiftly.
Mr Ofori-Atta has been in the United States since January 2025 receiving treatment for serious health conditions.
He was diagnosed with prostate cancer in early 2025, with MRI scans and a biopsy in March confirming disease progression. On Friday 13 June 2025, he underwent a radical prostatectomy at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, in what doctors reportedly considered a critical intervention after signs that cancer cells were spreading within the prostate.
Family sources say he had been under close medical review in the weeks leading up to the surgery and continues to receive follow-up care.
The former minister is also managing a post-COVID Multi-System Inflammatory Response Syndrome, initially diagnosed in February 2021, which has required long-term medical supervision.
Mr Ofori-Atta, who served as Finance Minister from 2017 to 2023, was a central figure in Ghana’s economic management through the COVID-19 pandemic, the country’s debt crisis and talks with the International Monetary Fund.
His extended stay in the US coincides with an ongoing criminal case in Ghana. In November 2025, the Office of the Special Prosecutor charged him and others with corruption and corruption-related offences. The matter is currently at the case management conference stage.
His legal team stressed that he remains “a law-abiding individual” and said he is working with US immigration officials to regularise his status while continuing his recovery.
