Derek Chauvin, the former police officer who killed George Floyd in 2020, was stabbed in a federal prison in Arizona, sparking a wave of protests against racism and police abuse.

Chauvin is serving a 21-year prison sentence after being found guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter.

Thousands of people protest to demand justice for the death of African-American George Floyd in Saint Paul, Minnesota (USA), in a file photo. EFE/Tannen Maury
Photo: TANNEN MAURY TANNEN MAURY

According to the attorney general’s office, the same office that prosecuted Chauvin in the Floyd case, the former police officer was notified of the attack early Saturday morning and told he is in stable condition.

The Bureau of Prisons released a statement saying that an inmate was attacked at noon on Friday, November 24, but prison guards intervened and took the injured man to a hospital. No one else besides Chauvin was injured.

“I am saddened to learn that Derek Chauvin was the target of violence,” said Keith Ellison, the attorney general.

“He was rightly convicted for his crimes and, like any inmate, should be able to serve his sentence without fear of retaliation or violence,” Ellison told CNN. (JO)