New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said President Donald Trump agreed to immediately grant a visa for slain teen Javits Frimpong's mother to travel from Ghana to New York to say goodbye.
In an Oct. 31 post on X, Mamdani said the two spoke by phone and wrote that Frimpong's mother “deserves to say goodbye to her son in person.” His post did not specify a visa category or confirm that a visa had been issued. The White House had not responded to a request for comment by Saturday, Gothamist reported.
The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said officers responded to a shooting call near East 171st Street and Crotona Place at about 9:24 a.m. EDT (13:24 UTC) on Oct. 29. Frimpong had a gunshot wound to the abdomen and was taken to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The department said no arrests had been made and the investigation was ongoing. ABC7 New York reported that police were seeking three teenage boys in connection with the shooting.
Frimpong's father said he brought his son from Ghana about a year earlier to live with him, according to ABC7 New York and The Washington Post. Both outlets reported that Frimpong's mother remained in Ghana.
MyJoyOnline reported that Ghana Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa said in a post on X that the government would cover the mother's travel costs and contribute toward funeral expenses. The outlet said she was expected to travel in the coming days, without giving a date.
