New troubling details have emerged regarding the Texas burial of George Floyd, who was murdered on May 25th when a white Minneapolis police officer held his knee to Floyd’s neck for several minutes despite the man’s pleas that he couldn’t breathe.
According to newly released records, at least six sniper teams, an FBI surveillance aircraft along with a Border Patrol unit, were deployed at George Floyd’s Pearland, Texas burial in June. Officials authorized the use of snipers and the excessive forces at the service for “a quick response to rioting and looting.”
The snipers had been stationed on rooftops at his burial, along with 66 members of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Border Patrol Tactical Unit (BORTAC), which are teams similar to SWAT teams and undergo a “grueling” training program made to “mirror aspects” of U.S. Special Operation Forces. The unit was implemented in 1994 to respond to rioting in immigration detention centers.
More than 500 mourners showed up to pay their respects to Floyd inside of a Houston church. Afterwards, a golden casket carrying his body was escorted by hearse to the cemetery in the Houston suburb of Pearland, where he was laid to rest next to his mother, for whom he cried out for during his final moments, which were captured on film.
Pearland spent a total of $326,000 for Floyd’s burial, with $30,000 being spent on “bike rack-style barricades” along the burial procession route. Most of the remaining money was spent on police overtime.
A spokesman for the city explained to Vice about the decision to have excessive security, including the snipers.
“The mission of all personnel was to provide a safe environment for the Floyd family to conduct their service in peace. Just because nothing happened doesn’t mean there weren’t credible threats. We plan for a variety of potential outcomes to be as prepared as possible.”
The FBI’s Houston division also issued a statement defending the extreme security measures.
“FBI assistance was provided to the Pearland Police Department, at the request of that agency, for the purpose of maintaining and ensuring the safety of the participants and the general public.”
However, despite the extra and potentially deadly security measures, Ben Crump, the Floyd family attorney, said they were unaware of the sniper units that were deployed.
