Hot SourceThe Attorney General’s Office says it has been unable to initiate extradition proceedings against former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta because the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has not provided the required investigative docket, despite several formal requests.
Deputy Attorney General, Dr Justice Srem-Sai, revealed that although the OSP has placed Ken Ofori-Atta on an Interpol Red Notice, signalling to the international community that he is a wanted person, that move alone does not amount to an extradition process.
“The OSP has already put the person on Interpol Red Alert. What it means is that it’s a notice to the whole world that this person is a wanted man, but the Interpol alert is not an extradition procedure,” he stated.
He explained that under Ghanaian law, only the Attorney General’s Office is authorised to formally engage US authorities to request extradition. However, the AG cannot proceed without a comprehensive case file from the OSP.
“We are the only authorities, that is the Attorney General’s Office that can make an extradition request. But we need a docket, an investigative docket from the OSP to be able to make this request. As of today, we still do not have a docket from the OSP.”
According to him, multiple letters and official demands have been sent to the OSP over the past two months requesting the docket, following public statements suggesting that the investigations were at an advanced stage.
“We have made several requests to the OSP, written letters, written demands to the OSP, asking that now that you’ve announced to the public that the docket is ready, we have been asking for the dockets for about two months now. We still do not have it.”
Dr Srem-Sai stressed that the United States cannot be approached based on announcements or red alerts alone. The Attorney General must present a complete case file backed by evidence and legal arguments, similar to what is required in court.
“You cannot go to the American authorities and say this is the person we want you need to show evidence. When they request extradition from us, they bring a full docket as if they are going to court.
“We have to do the same thing, take all the evidence, the applicable law, and then submit it to the United States authorities,” he said.
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