On the morning of Okpu’s death, he was scheduled to attend a dentist appointment, but when the resident adviser went to retrieve him, he did not respond. The adviser then relayed to the dental assistant that Okpu had refused treatment, and the dental assistant filled out a refusal form. ICE determined that GEO had “failed to comply” with the requirement to obtain a signed refusal form after attempting to counsel the patient to accept treatment.
ICE also found that medical staff at the facility failed to conduct a face-to-face encounter just an hour before Okpu was discovered unresponsive—despite claiming to have done so. Medical staff also falsely documented that they’d ensured he’d eaten both breakfast and lunch. ICE did not check to see if he’d had breakfast, and Okpu was found unresponsive when lunch was served at 11:15 a.m. After nurses attempted CPR, he was declared dead at 12:02 p.m.
Just three months after the death report was reviewed, ICE tossed GEO Group another $4 million, according to The Intercept. In 2023, 43 percent of Geo Group’s top-line revenue, more than $2.4 billion, came from contracts with ICE. Now GEO Group operates 19 facilities for ICE, accounting for $2.6 billion in total revenue in 2025.
