The Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has confirmed that Ghana has formally initiated and actively followed up on processes to extradite former MASLOC Chief Executive Officer, Sedina Christine Tamakloe Attionu, from the United States to serve her prison sentence.
Dr. Ayine provided the update on the floor of Parliament in response to questions from the Minority Caucus, marking the most detailed public account of efforts undertaken by the government to retrieve the convicted former official.
Dr. Ayine disclosed that the official extradition request was submitted on 19 July 2024 through Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ). Since then, the Attorney-General’s office has engaged America’s competent authorities to ensure the process remains active.
“The request for the extradition of Sedina Christine Tamakloe Attionu was dispatched on 19 July 2024… for execution. Our office… is awaiting the execution of our request to have her extradited to serve her prison sentence in Ghana” .
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine
He further revealed that the Ministry’s International Cooperation Unit followed up with U.S. authorities in September 2025, demonstrating, he noted, that contrary to public perception, the matter had not been abandoned.
“If there is any impression being created that I am not taking any steps, this is the evidence,” Dr. Ayine asserted, stressing that communication from the U.S. Justice Department confirmed that the extradition was progressing strictly under American legal procedures.
The U.S. authorities, he noted, “indicated that they are following their extradition procedures… and that the fugitive would be extradited as soon as they have satisfied all the procedures.”
No Need for Interpol Red Notice
The Attorney-General also addressed questions regarding the use of an Interpol notice, with Dr. Ayine clarifying that such a step was unnecessary in this case.
“In the case of Sedina Atienu, she has been tried and convicted. She is not a fugitive from justice in the same sense as the Hon. Kenneth Ofori-Atta, who is a fugitive from justice that we are seeking to bring back to trial”.
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine
He emphasised that Interpol notices are generally intended to locate individuals who are evading trial, not those who have already been lawfully convicted. “All we want is for her to be extradited to serve the sentence,” he stated plainly.
Pressed further on what additional steps Ghana was taking to expedite the process, Dr. Ayine underscored the limits of Ghana’s power under international law, adding that once an extradition request has been submitted, the responsibility shifts entirely to the receiving country.
“It is left to the authorities under the Mutual Legal Assistance Arrangement. The competent authorities in the United States… are the ones who have to take the steps.
“I can’t go to the U.S. and then ask to be joined to the action to quicken the process. All I can do is to constantly remind them that we want her extradited to serve her prison sentence.”
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine
Sedina Tamakloe Attionu, who served as MASLOC CEO from 2013 to 2017 under the first Mahama administration, was convicted in April 2024 on 78 counts including causing financial loss to the state, stealing, and money laundering.
The charges stemmed from multiple misappropriations of state funds, including monies allocated for public sensitisation exercises, assistance to fire victims, and procurement activities allegedly inflated at the expense of the state.
Her trial proceeded in absentia after she failed to return to Ghana from the United States, where she had travelled in 2021 with court permission for medical treatment. After refusing to return to face the charges, she was declared a fugitive. Following her conviction, a bench warrant was issued for her arrest, and Ghana began extradition processes—though little was publicly heard about these efforts until the change of government in January 2025.
A Significant Boost to ORAL’s Credibility
Public reaction to Dr. Ayine’s disclosure has been swift. Social accountability advocate Osagyefo Oliver Barker-Vormawor described the update as a significant reinforcement of the credibility of the Office of the Attorney-General, and the government’s flagship ant-corruption camapaign, dubed Operation Recover All Loots.
He argued that Tamakloe Attionu had exhausted her options. “She had every chance to appeal her conviction and didn’t. That’s telling in itself,” Barker-Vormawor noted.
The case has drawn significant attention not only because of the scale of financial loss involved but also because Tamakloe Attionu is a member of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Her conviction under a previous NPP government and the renewed extradition efforts under the current administration have intensified public debates about accountability, selective justice, and the broader fight against corruption.
For now, Ghana awaits the decision of U.S. authorities. While the timeline remains uncertain, the Attorney General insists it has fulfilled its obligations and is pressing diplomatically for the extradition to be completed. Should U.S. authorities approve the request, Sedina Tamakloe Attionu will be returned to Ghana to begin serving her 10-year custodial sentence with hard labour.
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