'US must tackle gun violence' – Mahama after death of Ghanaian teenager, Javits Frimpong

President John Dramani Mahama has urged the United States to intensify efforts to address gun violence following the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Ghanaian teenager Javits Frimpong in New York.

He described the killing as particularly heartbreaking because of the victim's age and the short period he had spent in the United States after relocating from Ghana to join his father.

Javits was shot in the abdomen while walking to school in the Bronx on Thursday, October 29.

He was rushed to St. Barnabas Hospital but later died from his injuries.

Speaking during an engagement with the Presidential Press Corps after his return to Ghana on Thursday, November 5, Mr Mahama said the incident highlighted the growing challenge of gun violence in American society.

"One of the issues America has to deal with is the level of gun violence in their society," the President said.

The President noted that although several Ghanaians had suffered violent deaths in the United States over the years, Javits' killing was particularly disturbing because he was only 15 and had relocated to the country barely a year earlier.

Although the motive for the shooting has not been established, the teenager's father, Thomas Frimpong, has raised concerns about alleged bullying at his son's school.

He previously disclosed that the school's principal had informed him that two students who allegedly bullied Javits had been suspended shortly before the shooting.