MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The Minneapolis officer who was seen on video kneeling on the neck of George Floyd, a handcuffed black man who died in custody after pleading that he could not breathe, was arrested Friday.
Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington said state investigators arrested Derek Chauvin.
The arrest comes after three days of protests, which escalated in violence as demonstrators torched a police precinct that had been abandoned by officers.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called for swift justice for those involved in Floyd’s death.
Protesters angered by the death of a black man who died while pleading for air as a white police officer knelt on his neck have torched a Minneapolis police station that the department abandoned.
Thursday marked a third night of violent protests following the death of George Floyd, who died in a confrontation with officers outside a grocery store.
Fires burned Friday morning in Minneapolis and nearby St. Paul. National Guard members were being stationed in locations to help stem looting.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s defended the city’s mostly hands-off approach with protesters.
He said it was his decision to evacuate the police precinct because officers were at risk.
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