Police are searching for Vance Boelter in connection to the shooting death of Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman, and the severe injury of Sen. John Hoffman.
ST PAUL, Minn. — Authorities are searching for 57-year-old Vance Boelter, who is wanted in connection with the shooting death of one and injury of another Minnesota lawmaker and their spouses early Saturday morning.
Around 2 a.m., officials say DFL Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were shot multiple times in their Champlin home. They are both now awake after surgery. Family says Yvette saved their daughter Hope by jumping on top of her. Officials say the shooter also went to the home of DFL Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman, where she and her husband Mark were shot and killed.
Authorities say the shooter was in a vehicle that resembled a police squad car, flashing lights included, and dressed as a police officer. When real police officers arrived at the Hortman home they were met with the shooter, who fired at officers before fleeing.
The suspected shooter is identified as Boelter. Authorities believe they found his cowboy hat in rural Sibley County Sunday morning along with a Buick sedan he’d been driving. The manhunt remains underway Sunday evening.
The situation has been rapidly developing. Below is what KARE 11 has been able to learn about Boelter.
Where was he last seen?
Boelter was captured on a bank security camera Saturday where he took out cash in Minneapolis. On Sunday, a cowboy hat that looks similar to the one he was wearing in the security video was found on the side of Highway 25 and 301 Avenue in Faxon Township. A black Buick sedan “associated with him” was also found and has since been towed from the scene. The Sibley County Sheriff says they do think he was in that area Sunday morning but do not know if he is still in the area.
What was his political affiliation?
Boelter’s roommate and best friend since childhood told KARE 11 that Boelter was a supporter of President Donald Trump, but added he was not very involved in state politics.
Was he appointed to a board by Gov. Walz?
Boelter appears to have been appointed to a workforce development board by former Governor Mark Dayton and reappointed by Gov. Tim Walz. The board is one with dozens of members and is non-partisan. People who serve on this board are not paid and the governor does not personally interview applicants. He left the board in 2023.
Boelter owns a home in Green Isle, but also rented a room in north Minneapolis from a friend to stay overnight when he worked in the city.
We cannot confirm what the motive behind the shootings was. However, a manifesto was found at Sen. Hoffman’s home which included up to 70 names, mostly of current and former Democratic officials, sources told KARE 11’s Lou Raguse, along with names and locations associated with abortion rights.
What charges might he face?
The Hennepin County Attorney’s office has prepared murder charges with an arrest warrant, a spokesperson said. BCA Superintendent Drew Evans said federal prosecutors have criminal charges prepared as well. Under federal law, if terrorism is charged along with murder, then Boelter could face the death penalty. President Donald Trump said in public statements that he is asking the DOJ to pursue charges.
The Mille Lacs County Sheriff, Kyle Burton, confirmed to KARE 11 that Jenny Lynne Boelter was in a vehicle with people detained in the Onamia area. She was not arrested.
Law enforcement is not ruling out that there could be other people involved, Raguse reports, but says there isn’t an indication that there was a second person involved in the shooting of the lawmakers. The Buick that was later found in Sibley County was registered to a different man, according to a law enforcement dispatch sent to South Dakota. The man’s affiliation with Boelter, if any, is unknown.