INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Derek Chauvin was stabbed in prison 22 times by a former gang leader and one-time FBI informant who told investigators he targeted the
ex-Minneapolis police officer because of his notoriety for killing George Floyd, federal prosecutors said Friday.John Turscak was charged
with attempted murder a week after the Nov
24 attack at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson, Arizona
He told correctional officers he would have killed Chauvin had they not responded so quickly, prosecutors said.Turscak, who is serving a
30-year sentence for crimes committed while a member of the Mexican Mafia prison gang, told investigators he thought about attacking Chauvin
for a month because he is a high-profile inmate but denied wanting to kill him, prosecutors said.Turscak is accused of attacking Chauvin
with an improvised knife in the prison law library around 12:30 p.m
on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving
Correctional officers used pepper spray to subdue Turscak, prosecutors said
interviewing him after the assault that he attacked Chauvin on Black Friday as a symbolic connection to the Black Lives Matter movement,
prosecutors said.In addition to attempted murder, Turscak, 52, is 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
Turscak is scheduled to complete his current sentence in 2026.A lawyer for Turscak was not listed in court records
Turscak has represented himself from prison in numerous court matters
After the stabbing, he was moved to an adjacent federal penitentiary in Tucson, where he remained in custody Friday, inmate records
His mother, Carolyn Runge Pawlenty, did not immediately respond to a Facebook message.In a post earlier Friday, Pawlenty said prison
officials had told her that Chauvin was in stable condition but were otherwise not forthcoming with details about the assault or his
The Bureau of Prisons said it gave updates to everyone Chauvin asked be notified.Chauvin, 47, was sent to FCI Tucson from a maximum-security
and away from other inmates, anticipating he would be a target
brutality and racism.Three other former officers who were at the scene received lesser state and federal sentences for their roles in
incident involving a high-profile federal prison inmate in the last six months
himself at a federal medical center in June.An ongoing Associated Press investigation has uncovered deep, previously unreported flaws within
annual budget of about $8 billion.AP reporting has revealed rampant sexual abuse and other criminal conduct by staff, dozens of escapes,
chronic violence, deaths and severe staffing shortages that have hampered responses to emergencies, including inmate assaults and
He became an FBI informant in 1997, providing information about the gang and recordings of conversations he had with its members and
The Mexican Mafia, a prevalent U.S
prison gang, was involved in a fatal 2022 altercation at a federal penitentiary in Texas.The investigation Turscak was aiding led to more
But about midway through, the FBI dropped Turscak as an informant because he was still dealing drugs, extorting money and authorizing
According to court papers, Turscak plotted attacks on rival gang members and was accused of attempting to kill a leader of a rival Mexican
Mafia faction while also being targeted himself.Turscak pleaded guilty in 2001 to racketeering and conspiring to kill a gang rival
according to news reports about his sentencing
