Floyd, Police Officer Chauvin 'Bumped Heads' While Working at Nightclub, Ex-Coworker Says

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - George Floyd and police officer Derek Chauvin charged in his death had a dispute while working together in a Minneapolis night club prior to the 25 May incident that triggered weeks of unrest in the United States, former co-worker David Pinney said in an interview on Wednesday.

"They bumped heads. It has a lot to do with Derek being extremely aggressive within the club with some of the patrons, which was an issue", Pinney told CBS News.

Pinney repeatedly said he believes Chauvin knew who Floyd was during his arrest and while pressing on his neck for at least eight minutes, which lead to the arrestee dying from asphyxiation.

Asked how well Chauvin knew Floyd, Pinney said, "I would say pretty well".

Maya Santamaria, the owner of the nightclub that was torched during riots following Floyd’s death, said Chauvin had a history of conflict with patrons but did not want him removed because he was one of the better officers at the local police precinct.

On 25 May, Floyd died shortly after being arrested by four officers in Minneapolis. A video of the arrest shows Chauvin pressing Floyd’s neck with his knee for at least eight minutes while Floyd was handcuffed and repeatedly said he could not breathe.

Floyd’s death caused protests against police brutality throughout the United States as well as the world. However, many protests turned into riots complete with violence against police and civilians as well as acts of vandalism, arson and looting.