US immigration judge had no jurisdiction to rule on Ofori-Atta's criminal case - Inusah Fuseini

Inusah Fuseini argued on Saturday, July 25, on JoyNews' Newsfile that a U.S. immigration judge had no legal authority to make conclusive pronouncements on the criminal case involving former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta in Ghana. He stated, "For a judge who is simply sitting down looking at whether or not someone qualifies to adjust his immigration status to make conclusive findings on criminal matters pending before Ghanaian courts is totally, totally out of jurisdiction."

His comments followed a U.S. immigration judge's ruling during immigration proceedings, which found that documents filed did not provide sufficient evidence from Ghana's Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) linking Mr. Ofori-Atta to criminal wrongdoing. This finding led to the approval of Mr. Ofori-Atta's application for lawful permanent residence, also known as a green card, in the United States. Mr. Fuseini maintained that the judge's mandate was limited to determining whether the former minister qualified to adjust his immigration status after his permission to remain in the United States had expired. He explained that criminal jurisdiction is territorial, and the U.S. court had no authority over criminal proceedings taking place in Ghana.