The man who sued Dep. Jeff Ellis for excessively using his K-9, Tazer, died of an apparent heart attack early Thursday, the county sheriff said.

Bryan Musolf, 51, filed a lawsuit in December 2007 against both Ellis and Mower County. He sought more than $75,000 in damages for what he claims were serious injuries inflicted by the police dog in October 2006.

Ellis was found not guilty by a Minneapolis jury in a federal courtroom Friday. The county had already been dropped as a defendant in the case following a federal judge’s decision this past July.

Musolf’s wife called authorities at around 6 a.m. Thursday, sheriff Terese Amazi said.

Amazi said Thursday that an autopsy still needs to be performed.