The United States government says it remains open to extradition requests from Ghana but has cautioned that the process is unlikely to be swift due to well-established legal procedures.
Speaking at a media roundtable in Accra, Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy, Rolf Olson, explained that the United States has strict protocols for handling extradition requests, which are triggered once a formal application is submitted by Ghanaian authorities. He made the remarks during a discussion attended by visiting Deputy Assistant Secretary for West Africa at the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs, William B. Stevens.
Mr Olson’s comments come amid growing public questions over why the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has not yet succeeded in extraditing former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, who has been declared wanted since the beginning of the year.
On Thursday, December 11, during the commencement of a trial in absentia following the filing of a 78-count indictment alleging corruption and causing financial loss to the state, the OSP told the court that some accused persons, including Mr Ofori-Atta, are currently outside the country and have cited health reasons for their absence. The OSP stated that it has activated appropriate legal mechanisms, including issuing summons and cooperating with international law enforcement agencies where necessary, to secure the appearance of all accused persons.
Public pressure has also intensified. As of Monday, December 8, 2025, more than 3,100 people had signed a petition addressed to the U.S. Embassy in Accra calling for the extradition of Mr Ofori-Atta. The petition was initiated on December 2 by U.S.-based Ghanaian law professor Stephen Kweku Asare, urging American authorities to collaborate with the Government of Ghana to facilitate the extradition of the former minister, who has been formally charged with economic crimes and corruption.
The petition further calls on the Embassy to assist in confirming Mr Ofori-Atta’s whereabouts, promote cooperation between Ghanaian and U.S. authorities, and expedite the processing of any official extradition request.
Responding to questions about U.S. cooperation, Mr Olson said the American government is always willing to consider extradition requests but stressed that the evaluation process is handled through the courts and is “very well-established” and “generally not very quick.”
“If we receive a request, it goes through the appropriate mechanisms,” he explained. “The door is always open to requests, but no individual case can be prejudged. U.S. judges ultimately decide whether to approve or deny an extradition request.”
Meanwhile, U.S. law enforcement authorities have successfully extradited nine Ghanaians so far this year, most of them in connection with romance fraud and related cybercrime offences, which have become a major transnational crime trend within the West African sub-region.
