Second Ghanaian found dead in New York days after Javits Frimpong’s killing
New York police are examining whether reported bullying at school may have played a role in the fatal shooting of Ghanaian teenager Javits Badu Nkansah Frimpong, as the discovery of another Ghanaian man’s body in the Bronx adds to the grief within the community.
The latest development in Javits’s case comes as investigators continue efforts to identify those responsible for his death, while the circumstances surrounding the death of 24-year-old Joseph Owusu, whose body was reportedly found at a dumpsite after he went missing for about two weeks, remain unclear.
Owusu’s death was reported on November 3. He was a member of the Ghana United Methodist Church in the Bronx, where he served as an organist. Reports indicate that a scrap collector discovered his body among refuse. No official explanation of how he died or the circumstances of his disappearance has been made public.
His death comes less than a week after Javits, 15, was fatally shot on October 29 while walking to DreamYard Preparatory School. He was found with a gunshot wound near East 171st Street and Crotona Place and later died at St Barnabas Hospital.
The New York Police Department is investigating whether an earlier school altercation involving Javits could be relevant to the shooting. His father, Thomas Frimpong, had said two students were suspended following an incident involving his son shortly before the killing. However, investigators have not established a connection between that incident and the shooting.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said detectives were seeking access to relevant school records as part of their inquiries. Police have also been examining other possible explanations for the attack, and no arrests had been announced in the latest reports. Three teenage suspects, believed to be between 16 and 18, were being sought.
Ghana’s diplomatic representatives have called for a thorough investigation. Ambassador to the United States Victor Emmanuel Smith has urged American authorities to establish the motive and examine all relevant evidence, while cautioning against implicating anyone in the killing without proof.
Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister James Gyakye Quayson also met Javits’s mother, Doris Adu Gyamfi, in Accra on November 2 and assured her of government support and continued engagement with US authorities. The government has separately pledged to cover her travel expenses to New York so she can attend her son’s funeral.
A community vigil for Javits is expected to take place in the Bronx on Thursday, November 5, as residents remember the teenager and call for answers.
Although the two deaths have occurred within days of each other in the same borough, there is no confirmed evidence linking the cases. The circumstances of Owusu’s death and the identities and motive of those responsible for Javits’s killing remain unresolved.
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