A man who died hours after being arrested by police had fatal amounts of MDMA in his system, an inquest has heard. Anthony Edwards, 37, collapsed and suffered a cardiac arrest minutes after being handcuffed by police in Bootle, Merseyside, on April 6 last year.
Incident Details
Merseyside Police were called to Kier Hardie Avenue at around 9:30am following reports of a man behaving erratically in the street. Mr Edwards was arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage but collapsed at the scene shortly afterwards.
An ambulance was called at 9:35am and arrived at 9:54am. Mr Edwards was treated at the scene with a mechanical CPR device, adrenaline, and a saline infusion, and was placed on oxygen. Paramedics managed to revive his heartbeat, and he was taken to Aintree Hospital where he underwent a CT scan.
He suffered another cardiac arrest a short time later. Medics once again tried to resuscitate him, but their efforts proved unsuccessful, and he was sadly pronounced dead at 12:09pm, reports the Liverpool Echo.
Inquest Findings
At an inquest at Sefton coroner's court yesterday, June 17, pathologist Dr Jonathan Medcalf concluded Mr Edwards' death occurred "very likely due to the toxic effects of MDMA." High levels of the stimulant drug, also known as ecstasy, were discovered in his system.
Dr Medcalf said: "The circumstances were at 9:30am on April 6, 2025, Merseyside Police received a call from a resident on Kier Hardie Avenue, in Bootle, indicating a male was smashing up a car in the street. The male had no top on. He was wearing only underpants and was causing a disturbance."
"Police arrived at 9:37am and found Mr Edwards to have cuts to his stomach, elbows, and knees. He was detained shortly after and placed in handcuffs. Officers raised suspicions that the incident might relate to ABD (Acute Behavioural Disturbance)." ABD is an umbrella term used by emergency services to describe medical emergencies in which an individual behaves in a way that may pose a risk to themselves or others.
Dr Medcalf continued: "Mr Edwards' behaviour was described as erratic, including headbutting a front door. Examination of the scene revealed the presence of blood stains, in particular on the front door, thought to relate to efforts to gain entry to the premises and the headbutting that was described."
"Mr Edwards' home address was examined, and there was evidence of recent drug use. Bags of 10 pink tablets were discovered, as well as a white crystallised substance. There were additional empty bags which were thought to have previously contained drugs."
"Police body camera footage was shown to me. I observed that soon after police attended, there was a suspicion of ABD. This is seen in particularly with cases of drug use, and there is a recognised significant risk of physiological deterioration, so it is classed as a medical emergency."
"Mr Edwards was placed in handcuffs and didn't seem to significantly resist. He could be seen on the ground for a period but was encouraged to sit upright by officers. Shortly after he did, he became unresponsive, and medical efforts were commenced."
Post-Mortem Examination
A post-mortem examination revealed that Mr Edwards had sustained cuts, bruises, and grazes to his arms, legs, and head, which Dr Medcalf suggested may have resulted from his erratic behaviour prior to his arrest. He had no significant injuries that would have contributed to his death, and there was no indication of asphyxiation.
Toxicology tests revealed elevated levels of MDMA in his system, which the pathologist described as "within the range that deaths from MDMA toxicity have been reported." He also had 141mg of alcohol in his system, which was "a level that may have given some features of drunkenness but was not dangerous in itself."
Concluding his evidence, he said: "According to body camera footage shown to me, this incident did not include any significant or prolonged violent struggle. Mr Edwards was urged to sit on the ground. Shortly after this, however, he went into cardiac arrest."
"On external examination, there were features of emergency medical intervention. No evidence of asphyxiation was found. There were, however, numerous—though generally minor—blunt force injuries to the body. Some minor cuts were also seen, suggestive of contact with broken glass, perhaps from the ground or the smashing of the car."
"In my opinion, the overall injury pattern is not particularly unexpected given the described erratic and agitated behaviour prior to the arrival of the police. However, it's possible that some of the injuries were caused during the restraint of Mr Edwards, particularly when he was on the ground."
"In summary, there was no evidence of a traumatic death in this case. Examination of the heart by a specialist team identified no abnormalities. Although this doesn't rule out a genetic predisposition to cardiac arrhythmias, there was no evidence of significant heart disease."
"Specialist assessment of the brain revealed no findings indicative of significant trauma to the head or any natural brain disease that could have contributed to the death."
"Toxicological analysis of blood samples revealed a high concentration of MDMA. This drug almost certainly accounts for this man's unusual behaviour and also for his cardiac arrest. His blood concentration was within the range that MDMA toxicity has been reported."
He found Mr Edwards died of MDMA toxicity associated with ABD. He said: "This 37-year-old man died after having been seen acting in an unusual and agitated manner in the street while intoxicated with the drug MDMA. His cardiac arrest occurred shortly after he was detained. From bodycam footage I have seen, there's nothing to suggest that the act of restraint in itself is likely to have contributed to the death, with his cardiac arrest being very likely due to the toxic effects of MDMA."
The inquest continues.
