George Floyd told police he 'could not breathe' 20 times, transcript of final conversation reveals

George Floyd told Minneapolis police officers he “could not breathe” at least twenty times, a transcript of his final conversation has revealed.

The 46-year-old died after being detained by officers in May, with one officer kneeling on his throat for almost nine minutes, as cellphone footage captured him saying he could not breathe. He then passed out, and subsequently died.

In the days after his death, protesters across America and around the world, seized on this words, which echoed the final utterance of Eric Garner, who died after being placed in an illegal choke hold by police in New York in 2014.

The four officers who detained Mr Floyd were fired and one of them, Derek Chauvin, has been charged with murder.

The other three Thomas Lane, J Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, were charged with aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.

What was not clear until Wednesday, was that Mr Floyd had gasped that he could not breathe not just once, but up to 20 times. He also told officers he had once been shot and that he was nervous when he was arrested, for allegedly using a counterfeit $20 bill.

The new information was contained in a transcript of video from two police body cameras, that captured Mr Floyd’s final moments alive, and which were entered into evidence by one of the officers, Mr Lane, who is seeking to have the charges against him dismissed.

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