26 year old Lawyer’s life cut short as cardiac arrest strikes during Ghana vs Panama win

The legal profession has been plunged into mourning following the sudden and unexpected death of Sara Araba Tettey, a 26-year-old attorney whose career was only just beginning to take flight.

Tettey collapsed without warning on Wednesday, June 17, as she celebrated Ghana’s opening World Cup victory against Panama alongside friends gathered at Standard Hostel, a residential facility situated near the KNUST campus in Kumasi.

What should have been a moment of pure joy turned tragic in seconds when the young lawyer became unresponsive amid the jubilation following the final whistle.

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The rapid response of those present — friends and fellow hostel patrons — meant she was swiftly transported to KNUST Hospital, where medical teams launched an intensive battle to restore her vital functions.

Medical personnel administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation for roughly three-quarters of an hour in a desperate bid to bring her back. Despite their valiant efforts, Tettey was pronounced deceased shortly thereafter.

A graduate of the Faculty of Law at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Tettey had only recently joined Ghana’s legal profession, having been called to the Bar earlier in 2026.

She was employed at O & A Legal Consult, where she had already begun to make a mark as a conscientious and capable practitioner.

Those who knew her well — colleagues from her university days, classmates from the Ghana School of Law, and fellow members of the Bar — have painted a portrait of an exceptional young woman whose trajectory suggested a distinguished legal career lay ahead.

Words like intelligent, diligent, empathetic and full of potential have become synonymous with her memory in the hours since her passing.

Social media has become a space where the legal community has gathered to grieve and commemorate her life, with tributes pouring in from across the profession and beyond.

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Her death has cast a melancholy pall over what was otherwise a joyous national moment, as Ghanaians celebrated their national football team’s promising start to their World Cup campaign.

The body remains at the hospital mortuary as preparations are underway for autopsy procedures and the planning of final funeral arrangements.

Yaw Opoku Amoako

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