Ghanaian Professor Kofi Akamani shot dead in Illinois; wife arrested
A Ghanaian academic working in the United States, Dr Kofi Akamani, has been shot dead in Illinois, where he served as a lecturer at Southern Illinois University (SIU) Carbondale.
The 48-year-old was fatally injured in a shooting near Lake Road, between Murphysboro and Carbondale, at approximately 5 p.m. on Saturday.
According to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, deputies who responded to the scene found Dr Akamani with gunshot injuries. He was subsequently transported to Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, where he was pronounced dead.
Dr Akamani was a professor in the Department of Forestry at SIU Carbondale, where he taught courses including forest recreation and conservation social science.
The shooting has prompted an investigation by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. Authorities have arrested his 35-year-old wife, Betty Akamani, in connection with the incident, and she is facing multiple charges.
Investigators say the circumstances surrounding the shooting remain under investigation, cautioning that the case is still at an early stage.
The Jackson County Ambulance Service, the Jackson County Coroner’s Office and the Jackson County State’s Attorney’s Office have assisted with the investigation. Authorities have not released further details.
Dr Akamani began his academic journey in Ghana at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Development Planning, specialising in Urban Planning.
He later earned an MPhil from the University of Oslo’s Centre for Development and the Environment in 2006 before completing a PhD in Natural Resources at the University of Idaho.
During his doctoral studies, he spent six months in Ghana conducting research into collaborative forest management and its effects on the social and ecological resilience of two forest-dependent communities in the Ashanti Region.
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