Derek Chauvin, the former police officer convicted of killing George Floyd, was stabbed in prison, Associated Press news agency and the New York Times reported Saturday.

The attack happened on Friday afternoon local time at the Federal Correctional Institution, Tuscon, a medium-size prison that has seen security lapses in the last year, the reports said. 

The Bureau of Prisons confirmed that an incarcerated person, whom it did not name, was assaulted at the federal Tuscon prison at around 12:30 p.m. local time.

The agency added that responding employees contained the incident and performed "life-saving measures" before the inmate was taken to a hospital.

No employees were injured and visitations at the facility, which has about 380 inmates, has been suspended.

A member of Chauvin's appellate team, Greg Erickson, said he had no knowledge of such an incident.

Chauvin, though seriously injured, survived the attack, according to the New York Times report.

Chauvin killed Black unarmed man in May 2020

Chauvin was found guilty of killing George Floyd, a Black unarmed man, after kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes in May 2020.

Chauvin is serving a 21-year jail term for violating Floyd's civil rights, as well as a concurrent 22.5-year sentence for murder.

Floyd was 46 when he died after being confronted by police on the suspicion that he used a counterfeit $20 bill to buy cigarettes at a Minneapolis convenience store. 

In a video recording that captured the scene, Chauvin was seen placing his knee on Floyd's neck. Floyd was heard saying he couldn't breathe more than 20 times.

Floyd's death sparked outrage and protests against police violence and discrimination across the US and the world.

In 2021, Chauvin was convicted on charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. 

Last week, the US Supreme Court rejected Chauvin's appeal of his murder conviction.

rm/wd (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)