Sedina Christine Tamakloe-Attionu, the former Chief Executive Officer of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre, has been arrested and detained in the United States as part of extradition proceedings initiated by Ghanaian authorities.
The arrest was confirmed in a statement dated January 15, 2026, and signed by Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Emmanuel Smith. According to the statement, Tamakloe-Attionu is currently being held at the Nevada Southern Detention Center, located in Pahrump, Nevada.
Ambassador Smith stated that Tamakloe-Attionu was detained by the United States Marshals Service on January 6, 2026, acting on an extradition request sent by Ghana to U.S. authorities in July 2024. He said she has since remained in custody awaiting court proceedings related to the request.
Tamakloe-Attionu was convicted in absentia by an Accra High Court in April 2024 and sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment with hard labour. She was found guilty alongside her former Chief Operating Officer, Daniel Axim, on 78 counts, including causing financial loss to the state, stealing, conspiracy to steal, money laundering, and violations of the Public Procurement Act.
The offences were found to have occurred during her tenure at MASLOC between 2013 and 2016. The court heard that she absconded while on permission from the Accra High Court to travel abroad for medical treatment. Following her conviction, the state obtained an arrest warrant to enable her capture and extradition.
In its judgment, the court detailed several instances of financial misconduct. These included the mishandling of GH¢500,000 linked to a loan arrangement with Obaatampa Savings and Loans, which was refunded but never returned to MASLOC accounts. The court also found that more than GH¢1.7 million allocated for a national sensitisation exercise was misappropriated, with only GH¢1,300 spent for the intended purpose.
The judgment further established that funds earmarked for victims of the Kantamanso fire disaster were partially diverted, with only GH¢579,800 of GH¢1.4 million reaching beneficiaries. Additional findings related to inflated procurement processes, including the purchase of vehicles and Samsung mobile phones at prices above prevailing market rates.
With Tamakloe-Attionu now in U.S. custody, the extradition process under the treaty between Ghana and the United States is expected to proceed through the American courts. If the request is upheld, she will be returned to Ghana to serve the sentence imposed by the court.
As of the time of reporting, no date has been announced for the extradition hearing. The former MASLOC CEO remains in detention, and the outcome will depend on the judicial process in the United States.