Ghana

The case concerned Ghana’s request for the extradition of a former Chief Executive Officer of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre, who had been convicted in Ghana and sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment for multiple offences involving stealing, conspiracy, willfully causing financial loss to the State, causing loss to public property and money laundering. The United States District Court for the District of Nevada certified extradition, holding that the extradition treaty between the United States and Ghana, together with the United Nations Convention against Corruption, was valid and in force and covered the relevant offences. The Court rejected the argument that dual criminality was lacking because the Ghanaian offences had a lower mens rea threshold than their United States analogues, emphasizing that dual criminality does not require identity of statutory elements, but only that the underlying conduct be criminal in both countries. On the facts alleged, the conduct would be prosecutable in the United States as theft or receipt of stolen government property and money laundering. The Court also held that Ghana’s judgment of conviction, together with the authenticated affidavits, was sufficient to establish probable cause, even though the conviction had been entered after the requested person failed to return to Ghana during trial. The Court therefore certified extradition and committed the requested person to the custody of the United States Marshal pending the Secretary of State’s final surrender decision. According to the subsequent Department of Justice press release, the Secretary of State authorized surrender and the requested person was extradited to Ghana on 8 June 2026.