Bronx Community Mourns 15-Year-Old Javits Frimpong, Shot Walking to School

Javits Frimpong, a 15-year-old student, was fatally shot once just before 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, October 29, 2026, near East 171st Street and Crotona Place in the Claremont section of the Bronx. He was on his way to school when three masked teenagers, aged approximately 16 to 18 and dressed in all black with blue surgical masks, ambushed him. Frimpong was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead. As of Friday, October 31, no arrests had been made. A growing street memorial of flowers and candles formed near the scene. His father, Thomas Frimpong, told reporters he believes the murder was connected to school bullying: just three days before the shooting, the principal had notified him that two students had been bullying his son and were suspended for a week. Thomas Frimpong brought his son from Ghana to New York one year earlier, hoping to give him a better future; the boy's mother remains in Ghana. The Bronx community and school staff expressed shock and grief, describing Frimpong as 'amazing.' Police are asking anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers.