Lawsuit: Postal Worker Dies After Prison Staff Allegedly Ignored Signs of Stroke

A new lawsuit alleges that Kingsley Fifi Bimbong, a Minnesota postal worker who died in police custody after suffering a stroke in November 2024, showed clear warning signs that were ignored by police and prison staff.

The Oct. 8 lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, names three police officers from Eagan, Minnesota, seven correctional officers from Dakota County and Dakota County as defendants. It claims Bimpong’s constitutional rights have been violated.

Bimbong’s family is seeking $120 million in damages and prison policy reforms.

According to the lawsuit The Eagan, Dakota County Police Department and its correctional officers showed “deliberate indifference” to Bimpong’s medical needs during the five hours and 40 minutes he spent in custody, CBS News reports.

By the time he was taken to the emergency room, the 50-year-old man had suffered a massive brain hemorrhage that proved fatal.

“This is one of the worst prison deaths we have ever seen,” said Katie Bennett, an attorney representing Bimpong’s family. told Dog 11.

According to the lawsuit, Bimpong left work early on Nov. 16, 2024, after complaining of a headache, and was later stopped by Eagan police for driving into oncoming traffic. Body camera footage cited in the filing shows Bimpong “exhibited severe physical and cognitive abnormalities.”

Police reports show that when questioned, Bimpong could not say where he lived or worked, despite wearing a USPS vest, and repeatedly replied, “I don’t know.” Officers also noted that there was no odor of alcohol.

Eagan Officer Martin Jensen, a certified Drug Recognition Evaluator (DRE), was called to determine if Bimpong was under the influence of drugs. The lawsuit notes that DRE training, provided by the Minnesota State Patrol, explicitly instructs officers on how to distinguish between drug use disorders and medical emergencies such as strokes; However, the lawsuit alleges that Jensen ignored that training.

Body camera audio reportedly captured him dismissing the need for a full DRE evaluation, saying it would be “a whole bunch of waste of time.” When another officer asked if Bimpong needed to be taken to the hospital, Jensen allegedly replied, “For what?”

Bimpong was arrested and taken to the Eagan Police Department for a blood draw. While there, the lawsuit states he “stumbled,” “remained confused” and sometimes “fell asleep.” A medical worker at the station reportedly asked officers if they planned to take him to the hospital, but one officer dismissed the idea, saying, “It’s a big deal.”

Instead, Bimpong was transported to the Dakota County Jail. During the ride, the officer was caught on a body camera starting to say, “Does this guy have a straw-” before turning off the device.

While in jail, surveillance footage shows Bimpong stumbling and unable to complete the booking before being placed in a cell, where he falls, urinates on himself and writhes on the floor. According to the lawsuit, during required welfare checks, guards repeatedly recorded “inmate and cell OK” and walked past his cell without intervention for more than three hours.

The lawsuit says a nurse was eventually called after a security guard noticed Bimpong foaming at the mouth and having seizure symptoms. The nurse mistakenly believed she had overdosed on drugs and administered Narcan three times, with no effect. When paramedics arrived, Bimpong’s blood pressure was a life-threatening 240/216, indicating a hypertensive crisis. Body camera footage later captured staff acknowledging that welfare checks had not been adequately conducted.

Body camera footage showed a nurse and a security guard admitting that Bimpong had been ignored and that welfare checks had not been properly conducted. As he was loaded onto a stretcher, the guard told the nurse what had happened earlier.

“He said, ‘He’s been like this all night, you don’t have to worry about it,’” the guard told the nurse.

The nurse responded, “That’s not okay.”

“Well,” the guard replied, “this person (the other guard) doesn’t check when he does his rounds. He just walks by and scans.”

Bimpong was rushed to hospital. Tests revealed a massive brain hemorrhage that caused severe brain swelling, and he was declared brain dead before being taken off life support on November 19, 2024.

Toxicology reports from both the hospital and the state crime lab also confirmed there were no drugs in his system, refuting the assumption of an overdose.

“Although Mr. Bimpong’s death is tragic, he did not exhibit an objectively serious medical condition that was apparent to laypeople at the time he was in the custody of Eagan officers and there [was] no indication that he required emergency medical treatment,” the city of Eagan said in a statement.

RELATED CONTENT: Political firestorm: Trump-appointed prosecutor charges rival New York Attorney General Letitia James with bank fraud