George Floyd murderer Derek Chauvin seriously injured after Arizona prison stabbing

Ex-police officer Derek Chauvin (left) recently had an appeal rejected for being convicted of the murder of George Floyd (right). Credit: AP

Derek Chauvin, the police officer convicted of murdering George Floyd, has been taken to hospital with serious injuries after being stabbed by another inmate in prison.

The former Minneapolis police officer, 47, was attacked at a federal prison in Arizona on Friday, with employees performing "life-saving measures".

In August 2022, Chauvin was sent to the Tuscon prison to concurrently serve a 21-year federal sentence for violating George Floyd's civil rights and a 22-and-a-half-year state sentence for second-degree murder.

On 25 May, 2020, Floyd, who was black, died after Chauvin, who is white, pressed a knee on his neck for nine and a half minutes outside a shop where Floyd was suspected of trying to pay with a counterfeit $20 bill.

Bystanders filmed as Floyd shouted “I can’t breathe” and his death subsequently sparked worldwide protests around racism and police brutality.

Three other former officers who were at the scene received lesser state and federal sentences for their roles in Floyd’s death.

George Floyd’s death sparked Black Lives Matter protests around the world Credit: John Minchillo/AP

In a statement about Chauvin's stabbing, the Bureau of Prisons said responding employees at Tuscon contained the incident before the inmate, who it did not name, was taken to a hospital for further treatment and evaluation.

No employees were injured and the FBI was notified, the agency added, while visiting at the prison has been suspended.

Last week, the US Supreme Court rejected Chauvin’s appeal of his murder conviction, while he is separately attempting to overturn his federal guilty plea, claiming new evidence shows he did not cause Floyd's death.

Chauvin’s lawyer, Eric Nelson, had advocated for keeping him out of general population and away from other inmates, anticipating he would be a target.

It is the second major incident at the Tucson federal prison in just over a year, as in November 2022, an inmate at the facility’s low-security prison camp attempted to shoot a visitor in the head.

The weapon misfired and no one was hurt.

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