After a lengthy manhunt, the suspect in the fatal shooting of Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, as well as a separate shooting attack on another state lawmakers and his spouse, was captured on Sunday night.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced that the suspect, Vance Luther Boelter, 57, was found Sunday night armed and crawling in a field near his home in Green Isle, Sibley County. Despite being armed, authorities said, Boelter was taken into custody without incident and no injuries were reported. Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said at the news conference that Boelter is in custody and has been charged in connection with the murders and the attempted murders.
The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office later posted a picture on social media that appears to show Boelter being taken into custody, writing: “The face of evil. After relentless and determined police work, the killer is now in custody. Thanks to the dedication of multiple agencies working together along with support from the community, justice is one step closer.” Hennepin County court records show Boelter is charged with two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree attempted murder. He is due in court Monday afternoon.
State Rep. Melissa Hortman, 55, and her husband, Mark, 58, were shot and killed early Saturday in their Brooklyn Park home, around 11 miles northwest of Minneapolis. About 1 1/2 hours earlier State Sen. John Hoffman, 60, and his wife Yvette were shot “multiple times” 5 miles away in Champlin. Gov. Walz said that John Hoffman is out of his final surgery and is moving toward recovery and Yvette Hoffman is healing.Boelter is suspected of gaining entry to the lawmakers’ homes by disguising himself as a police officer and arriving at the victims’ home in a vehicle that looked like a police cruiser equipped with flashing emergency lights.
Following the shooting at Hoffman’s residence, officers were sent to Hortman’s home to check on her well-being, officials said. As officers arrived at the residence, they encountered the gunman at around 3:35 a.m. The suspect and the officers exchanged gunfire before the suspect escaped, flee on foot and leaving behind his fake police car, where investigators found his target list, authorities said. Law enforcement sources also found in the suspect’s vehicle an alleged target list of dozens of Minnesota Democrats, including Gov. Tim Walz, U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith and state Attorney General Keith Ellison.
The New York Post reported that Walz appointed Boelter to a four-year term on the Governor’s Workforce Development Board in 2019. He earlier served on the Governor’s Workforce Development Council in 2016 under former Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton.The suspect’s wife was detained for questioning after a traffic stop near Onamia late on Saturday morning; she was released without being arrested.
The FBI was offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to Boelter’s arrest. Superintendent Drew Evans of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said at a news conference that “right now we are asking the public if you do locate him, if you see him, to call 911. Do not approach him. You should consider him armed and dangerous.”
According to an online biography, Boelter is a husband and father, and touted an extensive background in security and military training. Boelter helped lead the private security firm Praetorian Guard Security Services, which is based in the Twin Cities area, according to the company website.
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