SAMREBOI — Dominic Frimpong, a 20-year-old Berekum Chelsea footballer, was killed on Sunday when armed robbers attacked his team's bus as it returned from a Ghana Premier League match against Samartex in Samreboi, southern Ghana. Frimpong was struck in the head during the attack, taken to a hospital, and died from his wounds.

Six masked men wielding guns and assault rifles blocked the road as the bus carried the team back from the match. The attackers fired at the bus as the driver tried to reverse away from danger, and staff and players fled into nearby bushes to take cover. The bus was carrying 30 players and officials, according to Ghanaian authorities.

"Masked men welding guns and assault rifles started shooting at our bus as the driver tried to reverse," Berekum Chelsea Football Club said. "The players and staff fled into nearby bushes to take cover," the club said.

Frimpong was the only reported casualty from the incident. He had joined Berekum Chelsea on loan from Aduana Stars FC earlier this year and scored two goals in 13 appearances for the club this season. A 52-year-old man named George Owusu Afriyie was robbed of more than $400 during the attack, according to police.

"The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has received with profound shock and deep sorrow the tragic news of the passing of Dominic Frimpong of Berekum Chelsea Football Club," the GFA said in a statement. "The incident has sent shockwaves across the entire football fraternity," it said.

The GFA said it would strengthen security measures for clubs traveling for domestic competitions and extended condolences to Frimpong's family, teammates, technical staff, and management at Berekum Chelsea.

Local police said: "We have deployed additional personnel and crime scene experts to the area. The perpetrators will be arrested within the shortest possible time."

FC Savannah, Wa All Stars, Legon Cities, and AshantiGold have reported similar bus attacks in recent years. In 2023, the Legon Cities team bus was attacked by suspected armed robbers, though no injuries were reported in that incident.