{"id":110969,"date":"2026-01-13T14:42:48","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T14:42:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=110969"},"modified":"2026-01-13T14:42:48","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T14:42:48","slug":"ken-in-ice-ofori-atta-legal-team-casts-doubt-on-embassys-consular-intentions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=110969","title":{"rendered":"Ken in ICE: Ofori-Atta legal team casts doubt on Embassy\u2019s consular intentions"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>2 Minute, 5 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>
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Frank Davies, a member of former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta\u2019s legal team, has questioned the motives behind Ghana\u2019s Embassy in Washington, DC, offering consular assistance to Mr. Ofori-Atta following his detention by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).<\/p>\n

Speaking on Joy FM\u2019s Midday News <\/strong>on Tuesday, Mr. Davies described the embassy\u2019s actions as contradictory, arguing that they undermine the principles of international diplomacy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ask myself, with the greatest of respect, what Ambassador Smith came to do last night on the radio. Is it not a failed mockery of international diplomacy?\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

\u201cAll along, they have been monitoring ICE and the FBI, leading to Ken\u2019s arrest, and the same Ambassador Smith now wants to extend consular assistance and services to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. Davies further alleged that the embassy had collaborated with U.S. authorities in the process that led to Mr. Ofori-Atta\u2019s arrest.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe comes boldly on the radio to say that they have been collaborating and feeding information to ICE and the FBI to arrest Ken and put him in custody. If this is what is going on, Ghanaians are the best judges,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

His comments come amid growing public debate over the role of Ghana\u2019s diplomatic mission in the United States following Mr. Ofori-Atta\u2019s detention.<\/p>\n

In an official press release dated January 10, 2026, and signed by Ghana\u2019s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Emmanuel Smith, the embassy confirmed that the former Finance Minister had been taken into custody by ICE.<\/p>\n

According to the statement, the embassy moved swiftly to verify the circumstances surrounding the detention after becoming aware of the development.<\/p>\n

\u201cUpon receiving this information, the Embassy undertook the necessary steps to verify the circumstances surrounding the matter,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n

Following confirmation, the embassy said it formally contacted the relevant detention facility to request access to Mr. Ofori-Atta in order to provide consular assistance, in line with established diplomatic practice and international conventions, including the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, which guarantees detained foreign nationals the right to consular access.<\/p>\n

However, embassy officials were informed by authorities at the detention facility that Mr. Ofori-Atta declined to engage with consular officers at that time, stating that he would only do so in the presence of his legal representatives.<\/p>\n

The embassy noted that Mr. Ofori-Atta\u2019s decision was respected and that consular support remains available should he choose to engage at a later time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"KenFrank Davies, a member of former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta\u2019s legal team, has questioned the motives behind Ghana\u2019s Embassy in Washington, DC, offering consular assistance to Mr. Ofori-Atta following his detention by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15292,373,1906,1883,117,1352,10,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-110969","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-embassys-consular-intentions","category-frank-davies","category-hp-news-5","category-national","category-news","category-ofori-atta","category-politics","category-popular"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110969","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=110969"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110969\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=110969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=110969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=110969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}