KEY POINTS
- Javits Frimpong, 15, was shot dead on his way to school in the Bronx.
- His mother left Ghana on an emergency visa granted by President Trump.
- Police are searching for three teenage suspects; no arrests have been made.
The mother of Javits Frimpong, a 15-year-old Ghanaian boy fatally shot in New York last week, has left Ghana for the United States after President Donald Trump granted her an emergency visa, the BBC reported.
“I want justice for my son,” Doris Adu Gyamfi told the BBC at the airport before her departure. She said her son had dreamed of becoming a doctor and that she was traveling to help plan his funeral.
Javits Frimpong chased down on his way to school
Attackers chased and shot Frimpong, who had lived in the U.S. for only a year, last Thursday morning as he headed to school in the Bronx. He died at a local hospital.
Police have made no arrests. Instead, investigators are searching for three teenage boys who fled the scene and whom surveillance cameras recorded.
His death has sparked outrage in Ghana and the U.S. and reignited debate over gun violence in America. It has also raised concern among Ghanaians about the safety of children sent to study there.
Mamdani steps in on visa
On Saturday, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on social media that Trump had agreed to grant Gyamfi a visa so she could mourn her son in person. Mamdani said no parent should have to endure a child’s murder, especially from thousands of miles away, adding that the whole city was mourning.
Relatives and Erieka Bennett, head of mission of the African Diaspora Forum, escorted Gyamfi to the airport. Meanwhile, she thanked the government and well-wishers for their support and prayers.
Ghana’s government has condemned the killing and said it is following the case closely. It also urged U.S. authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and offered legal and consular support to help bring those responsible to justice.
