Former Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin, who was imprisoned over the death of George Floyd, was reportedly stabbed 22 times in the back while in federal prison.
Recently filed criminal charges revealed the new details in the case as the man responsible for the attack admitted to corrections officers that he would have killed Chauvin if they did not respond as quickly as they did.
Derek Chauvin Stabbing
The attacker was said to have used an improvised knife in the attack and he has been identified as 52-year-old John Turscak. The suspect now faces charges of attempted murder, assault with intent to commit murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, and assault resulting in serious bodily injury.
Chauvin was found to have been badly hurt after being stabbed in federal prison a week ago. The charging documents against Turscak indicate that the attack happened in the law library at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson, Arizona.
The former Minnesota police officer is currently serving his 22-year-old sentence in that particular prison. Earlier this week, a source said that Chauvin was hospitalized following the stabbing but was said to be in stable condition, as per CBS News.
Reports noted that Turscak also told investigators that he targeted Chauvin on Black Friday, a day after Thanksgiving, due to a symbolic connection to the Black Lives Matter movement as well as the "Black Hand" symbol that is associated with the Mexican Mafia gang. The suspect is currently serving a 30-year sentence for crimes committed while a member of the said gang.
However, Turscak made conflicting reports with corrections officers when he told FBI agents that even though he had been planning the attack against Chauvin for a month, he did not want to kill him.
Greg Erickson, Chauvin's attorney, said on Friday that they were "extremely disappointed" that the incident was allowed to happen. He added that it was surprising that someone would even target the former Minnesota police officer.
Target of an Attack
Following the stabbing incident, Turscak was moved to an adjacent federal penitentiary in Tucson, where he remained in custody on Friday. Prior to the attack, Chauvin's lawyer, Eric Nelson advocated for keeping his client out of the general population and away from other inmates, anticipating that he would be a target, according to the New York Post.
The former police officer was mainly kept in solitary confinement in Minnesota "largely for his own protection," Nelson said last year. Chauvin was arrested and imprisoned after the fatal arrest of Floyd on May 25, 2020.
Chauvin and three other police officers drove to a corner store following a 911 report that someone had tried to use a fake $20 bill to purchase cigarettes. One officer arrived at the scene with his gun drawn.
Another officer later pulled Floyd out of the vehicle and was pinned to the pavement by Chauvin and two others. A video recording captured by a bystander showed Floyd begging for air, saying that he could not breathe as Chauvin knelt on his neck for nearly 10 minutes, said the New York Times.
Related Article : Terrorist Attack Allegedly Planned for Tesla Cybertruck Event in Texas
