The New York Police Department has stated that city education officials initially impeded their investigation into the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Javits Frimpong, who was allegedly being bullied. This assertion comes after Mayor Zohran Mamdani had publicly announced his efforts to assist the slain student's family, including securing a visa for his mother.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny indicated that the Department of Education (DOE) required a subpoena to release information relevant to the investigation. "We're working with the Department of Education. Unfortunately, they're not willing to give us that information without a subpoena, so we're going through proper channels to get that," Kenny stated at a press briefing. He added that bullying is one aspect being examined in relation to the shooting.
However, the Department of Education countered the NYPD's claims, asserting that it had cooperated with the investigation and provided all requested materials. The DOE did not specify whether compliance was due to a subpoena.
Assemblyman Kalman Yeger criticized the DOE's alleged initial reluctance to share information, stating on X, "In Mamdani’s New York, the public school system @NYCSchools refuses to help catch a child’s murderers."
Javits Frimpong's father, Thomas Frimpong, has stated that the principal of DreamYard Preparatory School informed him prior to the shooting that his son was having issues with two other students, who were subsequently suspended. The father believes this bullying is linked to his son's death.
According to police, Javits Frimpong was walking to school on Oct. 29 around 9:25 a.m. near East 171st Street and Third Avenue when he was shot in the stomach. Surveillance footage captured the student running from an attacker shortly before the incident. He later died at St. Barnabas Hospital.
Kenny also described Frimpong as a student dedicated to his studies, noting that the teenager sometimes left his phone at home to focus on schoolwork.