The white police officer who knelt on unarmed George Floyd’s neck before he died has been accused of trying to kill another black man in 2008.
Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin was fired after being caught on camera performing a dangerous hold on the tragic 46-year-old as he gasped for air and begged for his life in Minneapolis on Monday.
Chauvin had 18 prior complaints against him, only two of which were “closed with discipline”, the police department said.
Thousands of protesters have since taken to the Minnesota city’s streets demanding he be charged over the incident, with red paint and the word ‘murderer’ daubed on his driveway.
And it has since emerged veteran officer Chauvin, 44, shot black man Ira Latrell Toles during a domestic violence call 12 years ago.
Mr Toles, 33, told the Daily Beast the officer barged into his home and assaulted him repeatedly in the bathroom before shooting him twice at close range.
Minneapolis Police Department officers arrived at Mr Toles’ apartment at 2am on May 24, 2008, according to reports – with the dad admitting the mother of his children had called 911 on him.
Mr Toles said, however, he was shocked at how many officers arrived at his door and after Chauvin barged his way in, he locked himself in the bathroom, but that door was also broken open.
“All I could do is assume it was the police because they didn’t announce themselves or ever give me a command,” Mr Toles said.
“I didn’t know what to think when he started hitting me. I swear he was hitting me with the gun.”
Local media reports suggest Chauvin shot Mr Toles after he allegedly tried to take his gun, but Mr Toles claims he can’t remember what happened, including being shot – though admits he did hit back initially.
It was only in hospital he learned he’d been shot – at such close range the bullet had past through his groin and into the bathroom wall behind him – leaving a finger-size permanent wound.
Mr Toles was charged with two felony counts of obstructing legal process or arrest and a misdemeanor count of domestic assault.
But he maintains he had no other choice but to try and defend himself, adding: “He tried to kill me in that bathroom.”
Chauvin and the other MPD officers at the scene were put on paid administrative leave pending investigating but were later allowed to resume their duties.
“I knew he would do something again,” Toles said. “I wish we had smartphones back then.”
He said he hopes Mr Floyd’s death will lead to a charge, while he is considering filing a lawsuit against MPD in relation to the 2008 incident.
Chauvin was also one of six officers at the scene when Wayne Reyes, 42, was shot dead in 2006 after allegedly pulling a shotgun on them, reports The Star Tribune.
Meanwhile, a second officer involved in Mr Floyd’s arrest, Tou Thao, was part of a $25,000 out of court settlement after being sued for using excessive force in 2017, reports the Daily Mail.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has called on prosecutors to file criminal charges against Chauvin over the death of Mr Floyd.
The four involved in the apprehension – which also includes rookie cops Thomas Lane and J Alexander Kueng – were dismissed from the police force on Tuesday, the day after the deadly incident.
President Donald Trump yesterday declined to say whether he agreed the officers allegedly involved should be prosecuted.
“I feel very, very badly that’s a very shocking sight” Trump told reporters, adding that he asked Attorney General Barr to take a “very strong look,” at it.
“What I saw was not good,” he added, according to a CBS reporter.
An initial video of the incident, which emerged on Tuesday, shows Mr Floyd gasping for air and groaning, “I can’t breathe,” as Chauvin pins him down with a knee to his throat, before he passes out.
