The former Minneapolis officer convicted of killing George Floyd recently released a statement, according to Breitbart. Tou Thao was reportedly sentenced to four years and nine months in prison earlier this week for aiding and abetting the second-degree murder of George Floyd.
Thao testified that he only served as a “human traffic cone” to keep bystanders away from the scene as former officer Derek Chauvin held his knee on Floyd’s neck for nine and a half minutes in what was considered murder. Contrary to the court of public opinion, however, a medical examiner revealed that Floyd’s death was caused by several factors, including his fentanyl use and Chauvin’s neck restraint.
Tou Thao, the officer who held back crowd as George Floyd was detained, is sentenced to nearly 5 years for aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.
Follow: @AFpost pic.twitter.com/A0bZIhfdcv
— AF Post (@AFpost) August 7, 2023
The incident caused a string of uproars around the country in 2020, leading to massive Black Lives Matter and Antifa riots that created more than $2 billion in damages.
During the sentencing, Thao said that he did not intend to hurt anyone.
“I did not commit these crimes. My conscience is clear. I will not be a Judas nor join a mob in self-preservation or betray my God,” he stated. He has since grown in his Christin faith while in jail for nearly a year while awaiting his sentencing.
Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill was not convinced of Thao’s statement and said that after three years, he expected the former officer to be more apologetic and not go into preaching. The judge said that Thao is guilty of what he did do and did not do.
A video shows Thao ignored concerned bystanders’ demands for him and Chauvin to check Floyd’s pulse. An off-duty firefighter can be seen in the video recording the interaction and condemning them for not checking his pulse or doing compressions if needed. She said that the guys were “on another level.”
However, Thao’s defense argued that the video proves that he should not be facing charges.
