George Floyd: New footage shows officer ignoring onlooker's calls not to let him die
Attorney for Floyd's family calls for all four ex-Minneapolis cops to be charged with murder following video's release
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Damning new video of George Floyd’s death shows how police ignored bystanders' pleas to intervene as ex-Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin knelt on the unarmed black man’s neck.
The video shows Chauvin’s colleague Tou Thao, arguing with bystanders as Chauvin kneels on Floyd, who does not move throughout the clip.
“He ain’t moved yet bro. He has not moved not one time,” one unidentified witness tells Thao. “You’re going to let him kill that man in front of you?”
Another witness, who phones emergency services during the incident, challenges Thao to check Floyd’s pulse, and demands: “Check his pulse right now and tell me what it is”.
The other witness tells Thao “You’re a bum bro”, as the cop stands in position between them and Floyd, who continues to be pinned down.
The witness, who continues to demand that Floyd’s pulse is checked, adds that “he was just moving when I walked up here”.
“I know, they did that to him”, adds a second man, who points at Chauvin as Thao stands between them and Floyd, waho can be seen motionless on the ground.
An attorney for Floyd’s family, Ben Crump, posted the video online on Sunday and said that it was “beyond disturbing, even harder to watch than the first video”.
The footage, which is more than four minutes long, ends with Floyd being loaded onto a stretcher.
“Tou Thao stood guard as Derek Chauvin MURDERED George Floyd ... while witnesses of the execution tried to stand up for JUSTICE, tried to save George’s life!”, wrote Mr Crump.
“The protest of those bystanders, who refused to just stand by and let it happen, has reverberated around the world”, he continued on Sunday. “Fueling our protest against injustice and police brutality!! 8 minutes 46 seconds“.
Mr Crump also called on prosecutors to charge and convict all four ex-Minneapolis cops with Floyd’s murder, following the latest video evidence, and said: “They MUST all be held accountable!!”
Whilst all four men were dismissed from their Minneapolis Police Department positions following Floyd’s death on 25 May, only Chauvin has been charged with second-degree murder, second degree manslaughter and third-degree murder.
Thao, aged 34, and officers Thomas Lane, aged 37, and J Alexander Kueng, aged 26, have all been charged with aiding and abetting the murder.
All were held on bail set at $1 million (£797,400) bail, although Lane was later released when his bail was paid.
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