Former Minneapolis Officer Tou Thao Gets Over 4 Years in Prison for His Role in George Floyd’s Killing

Tou Thao, the last former Minneapolis police officer convicted in state court for his role in the killing of George Floyd, was sentenced Monday to four years and nine months – even as he denied wrongdoing.

Thao had testified he merely served as a “human traffic cone” when he held back concerned bystanders who gathered as former Officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, knelt on Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes while the Black man pleaded for his life on May 25, 2020.

A bystander video captured Floyd’s fading cries of “I can’t breathe.”

At the sentencing hearing, Thao spent 20 minutes telling the court about rediscovering Christianity during his 340 days behind bars. He said he was “distressed” by Floyd’s death, but denied any role in it.

Read the source article at CBS News