Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, has called on successful Ghanaians living abroad to return home, invest and help create jobs, saying a stronger local economy could reduce the need for people to leave the country in search of work.
“We need to help Ghana become economically strong so that we can create opportunities for people to live better lives here,” Smith said on TV3’s Key Points on Saturday, November 7.
His comments came after two Ghanaians were killed in the Bronx, New York, within a week. Smith also warned Ghanaians travelling to the United States to be careful about the communities in which they choose to live.
He said Ghana’s Embassy was expected to support every Ghanaian in the US, but could not know the location of every citizen in the country.
Smith said he had written to the United States State Department about bullying and whether it could be connected to one of the deaths.
“It is very worrying, and Ghanaians in the US need to be careful about where they go and where they live,” he said.
Ambassador says son has faced bullying
Smith also revealed that his son had been bullied at school in the United States. He said he had formally reported the matter to school authorities and warned that he would remove his son if action was not taken.
The ambassador said racial discrimination remained a serious concern in the US, despite international efforts to confront racism. He argued that some people reacted negatively when others spoke differently or had a different skin colour.
“Nobody can convince me that racism doesn’t exist in America; it exists. It still exists. My son has been tormented. I asked him to report it to the authorities; it got me very worried, and I expressed worry to the Principal,” he said.
Smith said bullying could also be carried out by black people against other black people.
“This kind of bullying is no news at all. Personally, I’ve experienced it, my son. They do that. I don’t know why they do it. But the most painful part is that usually it’s black people doing it to black people,” he added.
He said his son had been expected to use American slang from his first day at school, a situation which could leave some African children feeling isolated.
“They wanted him to speak with American slang on day one. And they make you feel just like unwanted. They make the kids feel lonely,” Smith said.
Two Ghanaians killed in the Bronx
Joseph Owusu, aged 24, was found dead at a dump site in the Bronx after being missing for about two weeks. Ghana’s embassy in Washington and its New York mission identified him as a caregiver, while the mission said an autopsy was under way and no cause of death had been announced.
Surveillance footage seen on November 6, 2026, and shared by ABC7 showed two people believed to be adult men removing a large black duffel bag from the boot of a white saloon car. The footage, recorded at night, showed them dragging the bag on to the pavement before driving away.
The next day, another man was recorded placing the bag on a metal stretcher and wheeling it away. Owusu’s body was later discovered by a man searching for scrap metal.
His brother, Kojo Yeboah, said the family was struggling to accept the death and demanded justice.
“I need justice for Joseph. I want the truth to come out because my brother didn’t deserve to die the way he did. He’s only 24. He had a lot of living to do. I cried till my nose was bleeding because I couldn’t eat,” he said.
Yeboah was shown the footage and asked whether he recognised the people involved.
Javits Badu Nkansah Frimpong, aged 15, was shot while walking to school in the Bronx on the morning of Thursday, October 29. He later died at St Barnabas Hospital. His mother has travelled to New York and appealed for justice, while no arrest has been announced.
Mahama highlights gun violence
President John Dramani Mahama said the United States needed to confront gun violence and the ease with which firearms could be bought. He was speaking on Thursday, November 5, at a meet-the-press session with the Presidential Press Corps at Jubilee House after returning to Ghana.
Mahama said the exact reason for Frimpong’s killing remained unknown. Some accounts had linked it to bullying, but the NYPD was investigating.
“Some ascribe it to bullying, but of course the NYPD is investigating it. But two things the American people have to reckon with are the violent nature of their society, especially gun violence,” he said.
He referred to the constitutional right to bear arms, saying: “It is part of the amendments in their constitution that give citizens the right to bear arms. So, anybody can go to a gun shop to buy one.”
Mahama also pointed to the pressures of modern life and the difficulty of recognising when someone is struggling with their mental health.
“In the world today, there are so many stress factors of modern living, so mental health is becoming a major crisis,” he said.
“Sometimes, someone is stressed, but he is well dressed, and you will think that everything is okay. The day you realise that something is wrong, they may have guns shooting people.”
He said the United States had to address the extent of gun violence in its society.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said on Monday, November 2, that three hooded people wearing surgical masks had chased Frimpong and shot him before collecting the shell casings and leaving on a subway train.
Police were considering robbery, mistaken identity and bullying at school as possible motives. No suspect had been named and detectives had not said which line of inquiry they favoured.
Mahama said it was not only Ghanaians who were affected by violence in the United States. He thanked the Foreign Affairs Ministry for helping Frimpong’s mother travel to mourn her son, and praised Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister James Gyakye Quayson, who received her in Accra while the President was away.
Ghana’s New York mission had visited the family and was instructed to provide any necessary assistance. The Foreign Affairs Minister said the government was paying for the mother’s trip.
New York police have appealed for information through Crime Stoppers on 1-800-577-TIPS.
