Von Herman was killed in a car crash in 1978 when Ferguson was 20 years old, and his funeral was attended by government and military luminaries. Ferguson's mother died from cancer soon afterwards, and the deaths destroyed the family's fortunes. Family friends said that this deeply disturbed Ferguson, and he moved to the United States in 1982 on a visitor's visa. His friends supposed that he had trouble dealing with racism in America and that he felt frustrated because he couldn't find work outside of menial jobs.