Former MASLOC CEO Sedina Tamakloe returns to Ghana after extradition to serve 10-year jail term

Former Chief Executive Officer of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), Sedina Tamakloe Attionu, has been extradited to Ghana from the United States to serve a 10-year prison sentence imposed by the Accra High Court.

She arrived at the Kotoka International Airport on Tuesday, June 9, aboard United Airlines flight UA 996 from Washington Dulles International Airport. Upon arrival, she was received by security officials and taken into custody.

Sources indicate that she is currently undergoing standard debriefing and medical examinations before being transferred to begin serving her custodial sentence with the Ghana Prisons Service.

Her return follows a lengthy extradition process initiated by the Government of Ghana after she failed to return to the country following a medical trip to the United States during her ongoing trial.

In 2024, the Accra High Court convicted her in absentia on charges including causing financial loss to the state and stealing. She was subsequently sentenced to 10 years imprisonment after the court found that her actions during her tenure between 2013 and 2016 led to financial losses estimated at nearly GHS90 million.

The case relates to allegations of mismanagement and diversion of public funds under her leadership of MASLOC, a state-funded microfinance institution.

Court records show that Attionu was granted permission in 2021 to travel to the United States for medical treatment while her trial was ongoing, but she failed to return to Ghana, prompting the continuation of proceedings in her absence.

Following her conviction, Ghanaian authorities pursued her extradition, formally submitting a request to the United States in 2025. The request was reviewed by a United States District Court in Nevada, which certified the extradition after examining the supporting legal documents.

Her return is being regarded as a significant development in one of Ghana’s most notable corruption-related cases involving a former public official.

Authorities are expected to complete the necessary administrative and security procedures before she is formally handed over to the Ghana Prisons Service to begin her sentence.