The Government of Ghana has approved the engagement of celebrated United States civil rights lawyer, Ben Crump, to assist in securing justice for Ghanaians killed in the United States in recent months.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said approval had been granted to Ghana’s Permanent Mission in New York to engage Mr Crump’s services at no cost to the Ghanaian taxpayer.
“Ghana will go every length to secure justice and safeguard the dignity of our dear nationals abroad,” the Ministry stated.
The Ministry said Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa had held a positive telephone discussion with Mr Crump on the matter and expressed gratitude to him for his willingness to assist. It also acknowledged the cooperation and commitment of US authorities in the collective quest for justice.
Background: A String of Killings
The decision comes amid growing concern over a series of violent deaths of Ghanaians in different parts of the US.
Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, has disclosed that five Ghanaians have died under different circumstances since he assumed office, with most of the cases involving guns.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Media Relations Officer, Fred Duhoe, had earlier listed four victims killed within less than 10 months:
1. Akpene Diamond Tetteh, 37 — Savannah, Georgia
The PhD graduate was shot dead on February 12, 2026, just weeks after completing her doctorate. One suspect was arrested and arraigned in Savannah on March 3, 2026, while the second suspect remains at large.
2. Dr Kofi Akamani, 48 — Murphysboro, Illinois
The professor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale was killed on September 19, 2026.
3. Javits Badu-Nkansah Frimpong, 15 — Bronx, New York
The 15-year-old was fatally shot on October 29, 2026, at about 9:20 a.m. while walking to DreamYard Preparatory School in the Bronx. He was shot once in the abdomen near East 171st Street and Crotona Place and later died at St. Barnabas Hospital.
Frimpong had arrived in the US barely a year earlier to join his father. President John Dramani Mahama described his death as particularly painful and called on the US to confront gun violence.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said three hooded people wearing surgical masks chased Javits, shot him, collected the shell casings and escaped on a subway train. Detectives were considering robbery, mistaken identity and bullying as possible motives.
No arrest had been announced as of last week.
4. Joseph Owusu, 24 — Bronx / Brooklyn, New York
Days after Frimpong’s killing, the body of 24-year-old Joseph Owusu was found inside a large black duffel bag on October 30, in Canarsie, Brooklyn.
Owusu, a church organist at the Ghana United Methodist Church in the Bronx and a caregiver for people with disabilities, had been missing for about two weeks. Police said an autopsy was underway and no cause of death had been determined. There is no established evidence linking his death to Frimpong’s killing.
A fifth victim, registered nurse Lartey Solomon, 33, was also fatally shot in downtown Oakland, California, on May 31, according to reports compiling the 2026 deaths.
Government Response
The government facilitated an expedited US visa for Javits’ mother, Madam Doris Adu Gyamfi, to travel to New York. Ghana’s Permanent Mission in New York has also visited the families to offer support.
Ambassador Smith has said that while Ghana cannot accuse the US government of failing to act, it has a right to protest on behalf of its citizens.
“I have issued a statement expressing our unhappiness about what is happening; we cannot accuse the US government of not doing enough, but we need to protest that Ghanaians are unhappy,” he said.
Mr Crump is widely known for representing families in high-profile cases involving racial injustice, police brutality and wrongful death in the US. He had already been retained by Frimpong’s family and had joined a march in the Bronx demanding justice.
The Ministry has not yet provided details of the specific legal steps Mr Crump will take, the exact cases he will handle, or the timeline for the engagement.
