“George Floyd’s younger brother, Dejywan Floyd, has been arrested in North Carolina for a ‘road rage’ shooting of a white couple, killing the mother of six sitting in the passenger seat.”
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No, George Floyd’s younger brother wasn’t arrested for murder
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- A man named Dejywan Floyd was recently charged with murder in a shooting death in North Carolina, but there’s nothing to suggest that he is related to George Floyd.
- George Floyd’s obituary mentions six siblings and four step-siblings; Dejywan Floyd is not among them.
- The sheriff in the county where the shooting happened has said that there’s nothing to indicate this Facebook post is true. He said Floyd is a common name there.
On April 12, George Floyd’s younger brother testified in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.
Philonise Floyd said his big brother took care of him and his siblings and "was so much of a leader in the household." A post spreading on social media claims that one of his siblings was recently charged with murder.
"George Floyd’s younger brother, Dejywan Floyd, has been arrested in North Carolina for a ‘road rage’ shooting of a white couple, killing the mother of six sitting in the passenger," reads the text above two images: one of a Black man and one of what looks like a white woman.
A North Carolina man named Dejywan Floyd was recently charged with murder in the death of a a woman who was killed after being shot while riding in the car her husband was driving. But we found nothing to support a claim spreading on social media that this person was a sibling of George Floyd.
This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
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We reached out to civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, who is representing Floyd’s family, and did not immediately receive a response. But the George Floyd Memorial Foundation told PolitiFact that this post is false.
Searching for Dejywan Floyd’s name and George Floyd’s name didn’t turn up any credible news reports or documents connecting the two men.
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George Floyd’s obituary also didn’t mention Dejywan Floyd. Rather, it said he was survived by three sisters (Zsa-Zsa Floyd, LaTonya Floyd and Bridgett Floyd), two stepsisters (Camisha Carter and Constance Carter), three brothers (Terrance Floyd, Philonise Floyd and Rodney Floyd), and two stepbrothers (Deldrick Carter and Adrian Carter).
The Robeson County sheriff’s office, which is investigating the shooting in North Carolina, has "no information at all to confirm this is true," Sheriff Burnis Wilkins told PolitiFact.
"The last name Floyd is very common in our county and surrounding area," Wilkins said.
We rate this Facebook post False.
UPDATE, April 13, 10:15 a.m.: We updated this story after publication with comment from the George Floyd Memorial Foundation.
Our Sources
Facebook post, April 11, 2021
Reuters, ‘This is their blood’: Civil rights lawyer Crump fights for George Floyd’s family, April 11, 2021
New York Times, ‘He showed us how to treat our mom,’ George Floyd’s brother breaks down during testimony, April 12, 2021
NBC Philadelphia, Man charged with mruder in North Carolina road rage shooting that killed Pennsylvania mother, April 2, 2021
Robeson County Sheriff’s Office Facebook post, April 1, 2021
Lead Stories, Fact check: George Floyd’s younger brother was NOT arrested and charged in deadly road rage attack, April 12, 2021
George Floyd obituary, visited April 12, 2021
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No, George Floyd’s younger brother wasn’t arrested for murder
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