Trump Approves Immediate US Visa for Ghanaian Mother of Teenager Killed in New York

United States President Donald Trump has agreed to grant an immediate visa to the mother of a 15-year-old Ghanaian boy, Javits Frimpong, who was shot dead while walking to school in New York.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani disclosed the development on Saturday following a telephone conversation with Trump, saying the arrangement would allow the teenager’s mother, Doris Gyamfi, to travel from Ghana to see her son’s body and bid him farewell.

In a post on X, Mamdani described the tragedy as a devastating experience for any parent and said he had appealed to Trump to facilitate the mother’s travel.

“Javits Frimpong’s mother deserves to say goodbye to her son in person. I just got off the phone with President Trump and he has agreed to grant her visa immediately,” the mayor said.

Javits was reportedly shot in the abdomen at about 9:30 a.m. on Thursday while walking to school near Crotona Park in the Bronx. Police officers who responded to the incident found him with a gunshot wound and rushed him to St Barnabas Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The teenager’s father, Thomas Frimpong, said his son had previously complained about being bullied at DreamYard Preparatory School. In an interview with CBS News New York, he disclosed that two students had recently been suspended following an altercation involving Javits.

The 60-year-old father said his son had told him that one of the students repeatedly bullied him during lunch periods and that he had reported the incidents several times. He described Javits as a quiet teenager who hoped to become a doctor.

Meanwhile, authorities have launched a manhunt for three boys believed to be between 16 and 18 years old in connection with the killing. The suspects reportedly fled the scene wearing black tracksuits and blue surgical masks.

No arrests had been made as of the latest reports, and investigators had not established whether Javits was specifically targeted. Surveillance footage from the area reportedly showed a teenager running from another person.

The killing has triggered outrage in Ghana and among members of the Ghanaian community in the United States, with calls for a thorough investigation and accountability.

Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Samuel Ablakwa, said the government would work with US authorities to ensure that those responsible were brought to justice. After speaking with the deceased’s father on Friday, Ablakwa conveyed President John Mahama’s condolences and pledged government support for the family.

“We will pursue justice, and we’ll make sure that those who did this do not get away with it,” the minister said.

Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, also called for a thorough and impartial investigation, citing reports that Javits had experienced racial bullying at school. The circumstances surrounding the killing and any possible connection to the reported bullying remain subjects for investigators to establish.