George Floyd and Derek Chauvin 'Bumped Heads' at Nightclub Where They Worked, Co-Worker Says [Update: No, They Did Not]

Updated: 6/11/2020, 2:49 p.m. ET:  CBS News reports Dave Pinney has now retracted his story about Derek Chauvin and George Floyd not getting along. In the interview that aired, Pinney gave conflicting accounts of why Floyd and Chauvin didn’t get along at the nightclub where they worked. He attributed it both to Chauvin being “extremely aggressive” with customers and there being an apparent dispute over a paycheck that Chauvin felt was short and blamed it on Floyd.

In an email written to CBS, Pinney states “There has been a mix up between George and another fellow co-worker.” CBS stated that it verified the paycheck incident with “another person” but didn’t indicate who that was.

From CBS:

The club’s former owner, Maya Santamaria, had connected Pinney with CBS News. “She specifically said she was unable to give detailed information about George because she did not have a close relationship with him as I did,” Pinney said in the email. He said that led to his mistake.

“I apologize for not doing my due diligence and placing you in a very uncomfortable situation,” he wrote.

Earlier:
Shortly after George Floyd died, it was revealed that Floyd had previously worked alongside Derek Chauvin, the cop charged with his death, at a local nightclub. While it was initially unclear if the two had ever crossed paths, one of their co-workers says they had a rather contentious past.

“They bumped heads,” Dave Pinney told CBS News. Pinney worked alongside Chauvin and Floyd at the Minneapolis nightclub El Nuevo Rodeo. “It has a lot to do with Derek being extremely aggressive within the club with some of the patrons, which was an issue,” Pinney said, explaining the source of the conflict between the two men.

From CBS News:

The Floyd family says they believe what happened on May 25 was in part personal. Their lawyer has called for Chauvin to be charged with first-degree murder, “because we believe he knew who George Floyd was.”

“Is there any doubt in your mind that Derek Chauvin knew George Floyd?” CBS News asked Pinney.

“No. He knew him,” the coworker said.

“How well did he know him?” CBS News asked.

“I would say pretty well,” Pinney replied.

Over the course of the previous year, Floyd frequently worked as a security guard inside the nightclub. For 17 years, Maya Santamaria, the owner of El Nuevo Rodeo, paid Chauvin to sit outside the club in his squad car on the nights he was off duty. Chauvin and Floyd both worked Tuesday nights when the club hosted a popular dance competition. “I think he was afraid and intimidated.” Santamaria said when asked by CBS News if Chauvin had a problem with black people.

Chauvin has been charged with second-degree unintentional murder and second-degree manslaughter and is currently being held on $1.25 million bail. Thomas Lane, Tou Thao, and J. Alexander Kueng, the other three former officers involved in Floyd’s death, have been arrested and charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder as well as aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.