News - AP-State

NY prison guards indicted in connection with an inmate's death, governor says

Tuesday, April 15th 2025, 6:14 PM EDT

By MICHAEL HILL
Associated Press

Multiple New York prison guards have been criminally indicted in connection with the “disturbing” death of an inmate last month during a wildcat officers’ strike, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Tuesday.

Hochul announced the grand jury indictments in the death of Messiah Nantwi, a prisoner at the Mid-State Correctional Facility near Utica, a day before the prosecutor was due in court for an unspecified “noteworthy development.” The governor did not say how many guards will be indicted or what the charges are, and her office did not respond to an email seeking details.

“The tragic death of Mr. Nantwi at the hands of correction officers who are responsible for protecting the incarcerated population is deeply, deeply disturbing,” Hochul said in a brief video message.

Nantwi died at a hospital on March 1 after being transported from the prison, one of many in the state wracked at the time by a 22-day wildcat strike by guards.

Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick has been investigating his death.

The New York Times interviewed multiple inmates at the prison who reported that Nantwi was severely beaten by correctional officers before he died.

The office of New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a court filing last month there was “probable cause to believe” that as many as nine correctional officers either caused or could be implicated in Nantwi’s death. Three guards were suspended without pay and 12 more were placed on paid administrative leave following his death.

The special prosecutor’s office declined Tuesday to provide details on the new development. Fitzpatrick, who had said he would not comment on the case until a grand jury took action, has scheduled a news conference for 3:30 p.m. Wednesday following the court appearance.

Nantwi's death came several months after another inmate, Robert Brooks, was fatally beaten at another prison, the Marcy Correctional Facility, that sits across the street from the Mid-State Correctional Facility. Six guards were charged with murder, three with manslaughter and one with evidence tampering in Brooks’ death. They have pleaded not guilty, and their cases are pending.

Correctional officers upset over working conditions began illegally walking off the job Feb. 17 at many state prisons, forcing Hochul to send National Guard troops in to maintain operations. Incarcerated people and their advocates complained that services and conditions deteriorated during the walkout.

The strike ended when many guards returned to work and Hochul fired the remaining 2,000 holdouts.

Nantwi entered the state prison system last May and had been serving a five-year sentence for second-degree criminal possession of a weapon related to an exchange of gunfire with police officers in 2021. At the time, he was shot multiple times, while the officers were uninjured.

Manhattan prosecutors say Nantwi shot and killed Jaylen Duncan, 19, on a Harlem street in April 2023. The following evening, they say, he shot and killed Brandon Brunson, 36, at a Harlem smoke shop after an argument.