Federal prosecutors announced Friday that an incarcerated gang member and ex-FBI informant allegedly stabbed former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin 22 times at a federal prison in Arizona.

Reports broke last Friday that Chauvin was stabbed in prison while simultaneously serving a 21-year federal sentence for violating Floyd’s civil rights and a 22½-year state sentence for second-degree murder.

According to NPR, federal prosecutors allege John Turscak, 52, “stabbed Chauvin 22 times at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson and said he would have killed Chauvin had correctional officers not responded so quickly.”

Turscak is serving a 30-year sentence for crimes committed while a member of the Mexican Mafia gang.

“Prosecutors said that Turscak was an FBI informant in 1997, providing information about his gang as well as recordings of conversations between him, members, and associates,” Fox News reports.

Collin Rugg writes:

The man who stabbed Derek Chauvin in prison was 52-year-old John Turscak who previously worked as an FBI informant.

How ironic.

Chauvin was stabbed 22 times with a knife that was crafted by Turscak.

This is where it gets interesting. Turscak was in prison after being found guilty of racketeering and conspiring to kill a gang rival.

Before that, he worked as an FBI informant against the Mexican Mafia organization.

When being sentenced in 2001, Turscak admitted that he carried out crimes while working undercover as an informant to the FBI.

“I didn’t commit those crimes for kicks. I did them because I had to if I wanted to stay alive. I told that to the [FBI] agents and they just said, ‘Do what you have to do.’” (LA Times)

WATCH:

Fox News reports:

The investigation resulted in 40 indictments, but halfway through, Turscak was dropped as an informant because he was dealing drugs, authorizing assaults, and extorting money.

He claimed to have targeted Chauvin solely because he is a high-profile inmate – something prison experts warned was likely to happen.

Turscak could see 60 years added to his federal sentence if he gets the maximum punishment on all of the charges he faces. He was due for release in 2026, according to the Bureau of Prisons.

Laura Loomer writes:

The inmate who stabbed Derek Chauvin 22 times in prison last week has been identified by The U.S. Attorney’s Office 52-year-old John Turscak.

Oddly enough, Turscak is a former FBI informant!!

Coincidence? I don’t think so.

Seems like a coordinated effort to kill Chauvin.

“Turscak told investigators that he attacked Chauvin on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, as a symbolic connection to the Black Lives Matter movement and the “Black Hand” symbol associated with the Mexican Mafia gang, prosecutors said.”

From NPR:

Turscak is accused of attacking Chauvin with an improvised knife in the prison’s law library around 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 24, the day after Thanksgiving. The Bureau of Prisons said employees stopped the attack and performed “life-saving measures.” Chauvin was taken to a hospital for treatment.

Turscak told FBI agents interviewing him after the assault that he attacked Chauvin on Black Friday as a symbolic connection to the Black Lives Matter movement, which garnered widespread support in the wake of Floyd’s death, and the “Black Hand” symbol associated with the Mexican Mafia, prosecutors said.

Turscak, 52, is also charged with assault with intent to commit murder, assault with a dangerous weapon and assault resulting in serious bodily injury. The attempted murder and assault with intent to commit murder charges are each punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

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