MASLOC Funds Misappropriation Lands Former CEO Sedina Tamaklo-Attionu a 10-Year Jail Term

A former Chief Executive Officer of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), Sedina Tamaklo-Attionu, is facing a 10-year prison sentence for misappropriating public funds after she was arrested in the United States following years on the run, Ghana’s embassy in Washington has confirmed.

In a statement dated January 15 and signed by Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, authorities disclosed that Tamaklo-Attionu was arrested by the United States Marshals Service on January 6, 2026, and is currently being held at the Southern Nevada Detention Centre in Pahrump, pending court proceedings linked to her extradition and sentence enforcement.

Convicted in Absentia

Tamaklo-Attionu was convicted in absentia in April 2024 and sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment for embezzlement, wilfully causing financial loss to the state, and making unauthorised financial commitments during her tenure at MASLOC.

Her former deputy, Daniel Axim, who served as Chief Operating Officer, was also convicted and handed a five-year prison sentence with hard labour for his role in causing financial loss to the state amounting to GH¢90 million.

The former MASLOC boss absconded while on court-approved travel abroad for medical treatment and failed to return to Ghana to stand trial, prompting international efforts to track her down.

EOCO Investigations Uncover Widespread Abuse

Investigations by the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), which began in 2017, revealed extensive financial irregularities and the fraudulent disbursement of public funds under Tamaklo-Attionu’s administration.

Prosecutors established that she personally embezzled GH¢3.19 million and deliberately caused an additional financial loss of GH¢1.97 million to the state. She was further found to have made unauthorised financial commitments that exposed the government to liabilities totalling GH¢61.74 million.

Breakdown of the Misappropriated Funds

Court proceedings detailed how Tamaklo-Attionu appropriated GH¢500,000 of MASLOC funds for personal use after the money was returned by Obaatanpa Micro-Finance Company Limited.

She was also found to have withdrawn GH¢1.816 million in multiple tranches, even though the MASLOC board had approved only GH¢1.706 million for a nationwide sensitisation programme. Evidence showed that just GH¢1,300 was spent on refreshments for a limited number of beneficiaries in the Volta, Greater Accra and Brong-Ahafo regions, with no sensitisation activities carried out in the remaining regions.

Further findings revealed that only GH¢579,800 was disbursed out of GH¢1,465,035 allocated to victims of the 2013 Kantamanto Market fire disaster, leaving a substantial portion of the funds unaccounted for.

Inflated Procurements and Unauthorised Payments

Tamaklo-Attionu was also implicated in the procurement of vehicles at highly inflated prices without approval from the Public Procurement Authority. These included 150 Chevy Aveo saloon cars, 100 Chevy Sparklite vehicles and 33-seater Isuzu buses, all acquired in 2013 at costs far above prevailing market rates.

In another transaction, she authorised the purchase of 200 Samsung B310 dual-SIM mobile phones under the PINCO Project Market Survey in 2016 at a cost of GH¢93,412, despite the market value being estimated at GH¢24,400.

The court further found that she approved ex-gratia payments of GH¢135,592.33 for herself and GH¢82,218.76 for her deputy, in addition to leave allowances of GH¢28,445.94 and GH¢27,486.62, respectively—payments deemed unlawful and unjustified.

With her arrest in the United States, Ghanaian authorities are expected to pursue the necessary legal processes to ensure Tamaklo-Attionu serves her 10-year jail term, bringing to a close a high-profile corruption case that has symbolised the abuse of public trust at one of the country’s key social intervention agencies.

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