Minneapolis police officer Derek
Chauvin has been taken into custody over the death of black man George Floyd,
four days after he was seen kneeling on his neck in a video of his arrest that
has sparked violent protests across the country.
The 44-year-old white cop was
arrested by state investigators on Friday afternoon, Public Safety Commissioner
John Harrington announced. He has been charged with third-degree murder, manslaughter.
Chauvin was one of four officers
fired over Floyd's death earlier this week however, Harrington did not provide
details on the other three cops.
The
arrest comes after days of riots and unrest across Minneapolis - and several
states - demanding justice for 46-year-old Floyd.
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| George Floyd |
In widely circulated footage, Floyd
was seen on the ground with his hands cuffed behind his back Chauvin pinned him
to the pavement until he lost consciousness and later
died.
Earlier today Keith Ellison, the
Attorney General, told CNN that officials were ensuring they
have 'a very strong case' before they could announce charges.
'Everybody believes that this is a
violation of Mr Floyd,' Ellison said. 'And I believe that everybody wants to
see these charges filed as soon as they can be. But again, I do want to say we
have seen cases that seem so clear go south.'
Chauvin and the other three officers
in Floyd's arrest - J Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao - were
fired but say they don't plan to cooperate.
Prosecutors on Thursday had warned
there was 'evidence that does not support criminal charges' in the case of four
cops accused of killing George Floyd, as they say police can use a 'certain
amount of force - but not excessive'.
At a press conference Mike Freeman,
county attorney for Hennepin County, condemned the actions of white cop
Derek Chauvin as 'horrific and terrible', but said prosecutors needed to determine
if he used 'excessive' force when he knelt on the black man's neck for eight
minutes until he passed out and later died.
'That video is graphic and horrific
and terrible and no person should do that,' he said.
'But my job in the end is to prove he
violated a criminal statute - but there is other evidence that does not support
a criminal charge.'
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