Author: Alfred Ogbamey
Emerging details suggest that till his request for a renewed bond hearing is heard and granted, the former Ghanaian Minister of Finance battling his return to Accra, Kenneth Nana Yaw Ofori-Atta, could be held in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody till 1pm of Monday, 27 April 2026, when he reappears before Judge David A Gardey of the Annandale Court, in Virginia, USA.
The former Minister, who is on record as the longest serving Finance Minister of the NPP tradition in Ghanaian history, is seeking to avoid calls for accountability for his tenure at home.
He appeared before the American court yesterday dressed in what appears to be ICE colour-coded dark blue overall uniform, with a wristband on his right upper arm.
He initially wore a jacket over his issued attire and also had a face mask on.
ICE classifies detainees through a colour-coded uniform and wristband system based on assessed security risk levels, often mirroring the systems used in American prisons.
“Based on ICE/DRO Detention Standards for Service Processing Centers (SPCs) and Contract Detention Facilities (CDFs), the classification system is typically as follows:
*Dark Red: Level 3 (Highest Security)
- Bright Orange: Level 2 (Medium Security)
- Dark Blue: Level 1 (Lowest Security)”
- Sources say he’ll only be released when granted bail to stay at his residence in Washington DC, not far from the offices of former U.S. 79th Attorney General and Missouri Senator, John Ashcroft, whose law and lobbying group, The Ashcroft Law Firm, also represent him in addition to others.
- At his formal hearing yesterday, Ofori-Atta asked the court for the proceedings to be conducted in-camera or private.
The Annandale Court will ultimately determine whether Ofori-Atta, who also has an extradition request from Ghana hanging on his head, should be deported to Accra.
American authorities want the former Minister deported to Ghana for being an illegal alien in violation of American immigration laws.
They say he violated US immigration laws by overstaying his permitted admission, and that he is also wanted by Accra for alleged corruption and corruption-related activities in Ghana.
Ofori-Atta was arrested early in the first week of January, this year.
