- George Floyd and Derek Chauvin “bumped heads” at the Minneapolis nightclub where they both worked in 2019, a former coworker told CBS on Tuesday.
- Floyd and Chauvin’s overlapping time at El Nuevo Rodeo had previously been reported, but it was unclear whether they ever met on the job.
- Floyd and Chauvin’s issues had “a lot to do with Derek being extremely aggressive within the club with some of the patrons, which was an issue,” the coworker, David Pinney, said.
- Floyd died May 25 after Chauvin, then working as a police officer, knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes while Floyd said he couldn’t breathe.
- Chauvin was subsequently fired from the police force and charged with second-degree murder.
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George Floyd and Derek Chauvin, the police officer charged with murder in his death, not only knew each other from working at a Minneapolis nightclub, but also didn’t get along, a former coworker has said.
While it was previously reported that Floyd and Chauvin’s time working at El Nuevo Rodeo overlapped, it had been unclear whether they actually met on the job.
The former owner Maya Santamaria said in previous interviews that she was unsure whether the two interacted but that Floyd worked as a bouncer inside the club while Chauvin patrolled outside the club while off-duty as a police officer.
But David Pinney, who also worked at the club, told CBS on Tuesday that the two did meet before the fatal encounter on May 25 when Chauvin, then arresting him as a police officer, knelt on Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes.
Floyd's death has set off protests across the US and prompted Chauvin's firing from the Minneapolis Police Department and his arrest on charges of second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
Pinney said there was no doubt in his mind that the two knew each other and knew each other "pretty well."
"They bumped heads," Pinney said of the two, adding that their issues had "a lot to do with Derek being extremely aggressive within the club with some of the patrons, which was an issue."
In a previous interview with KSTP, Santamaria said that Chauvin worked for the club for the 17 years it was open and that Floyd worked as a bouncer there in 2019.
Pinney's characterization of Chauvin's temper appears to line up with what Santamaria has said about the former officer in other interviews.
She told BuzzFeed News that Chauvin "was nice, but he would overreact and lash out quickly," and that she noticed his demeanor would change during special events for the Black community.
"His face, attitude, posture would change when we did urban nights," she said, adding that she had reprimanded him before for using pepper spray on patrons.
When asked by CBS on Tuesday whether Chauvin "had a problem with Black people," Santamaria said: "I think he was afraid and intimidated" by them.
- Read more:
- 18 complaints in 19 years, and a murder charge: What we know about ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin
- George Floyd and Derek Chauvin worked at the same nightclub in Minneapolis for the whole of 2019, but may not have known each other
- The video of George Floyd's death could offer clues into how the 3 ex-cops charged with aiding and abetting murder will defend themselves, experts say
- 2 of the police officers charged over George Floyd's deadly arrest had been less than 4 days into the job, their lawyers say
