The individual charged with the assassination of a Minnesota politician and the shooting of another this past weekend traveled to the residences of at least four state politicians as part of a premeditated killing spree, according to federal authorities.
Vance Boelter, 57, is facing both state and federal murder charges after being apprehended last night following a massive two-day manhunt, which has been deemed the largest in state history.
He is alleged to have fatally shot Melissa Hortman, the leading Democrat in the Minnesota House, and her husband, Mark, in their home on Saturday. Additionally, he is charged with shooting and injuring another Democratic politician, state Senator John Hoffman, along with his wife Yvette, at their home just a few miles away.
Prosecutors revealed that Mr. Boelter had visited the homes of two other politicians on Saturday while disguised as a police officer, in search of further victims from his list. Investigators have found notebooks in his vehicle and residence that outline elements of his planning and contain the names of numerous legislators, predominantly Democrats, as well as abortion rights advocates.
Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were shot dead in Minnesota on Saturday.
While Mr. Thompson characterized the shootings as politically motivated, he indicated that a specific motive remains unclear. Contrary to some previous media reports, authorities have not located a “Unabomber-style manifesto,” according to Mr. Thompson.
Mr. Boelter is anticipated to appear remotely in Hennepin County court later to face charges of second-degree murder and attempted murder. The county’s chief prosecutor, Mary Moriarty, stated that she intends to pursue first-degree murder charges, which would carry a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
Federal prosecutors have separately charged Mr. Boelter with a range of offenses, including murder, which could potentially lead to a death sentence. He is scheduled to appear in federal court in St. Paul today.
The Minnesota incidents began at around 2 a.m. on Saturday, when a gunman clad in a police-style tactical vest and a “hyper-realistic silicone mask” knocked on the Hoffmans’ front door in Champlin, identified himself as a police officer, and then shot the couple multiple times, according to prosecutors.
He was driving an SUV equipped with police-style lights and a fraudulent license plate reading ‘POLICE’.
Mr. Boelter then proceeded to the residence of another state politician in Maple Grove, ringing the doorbell at 2:24 a.m., as reported by Mr. Thompson. This official, whose name prosecutors have not disclosed, was not present.
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Mr. Boelter also visited the residence of a state senator in New Hope, according to prosecutors. An officer who was dispatched to the location to conduct a wellness check after learning of the Hoffman shooting mistook Mr. Boelter, who was parked outside, for another police officer and approached him.
“He just sat there and stared straight ahead,” Mr. Thompson recounted regarding Boelter. The responding officer proceeded to the door while awaiting additional units, and by the time they arrived, Mr. Boelter had already left, prosecutors noted.
Shortly after, law enforcement was dispatched to the Hortmans’ residence in Brooklyn Park as a precautionary measure. Upon arrival, officers witnessed the suspect shoot Mark Hortman through an open door around 3:35 a.m., leading to an exchange of gunfire before he fled on foot through the back exit, as per prosecutors.
Melissa Hortman was already deceased inside.
During a search of Mr. Boelter’s SUV, authorities discovered three AK-47 assault rifles, a 9-mm handgun, a gold police-style badge, and the target list.
A vehicle associated with Vance Boelter was towed during the manhunt.
Notebooks retrieved from Mr. Boelter’s vehicle, as well as from the home where he had been residing, indicated that he had been planning the attacks for an extended period, according to prosecutors.
He possessed the names and, in some instances, home addresses for over 45 elected officials, “mostly or all Democrats,” as stated in an FBI affidavit.
In one notebook, Mr. Boelter documented that the Hortmans had two children and included surveillance notes about their residence, remarking, “Big house off golf course 2 ways in to watch from one spot,” according to the affidavit.
Hours after the shootings, Mr. Boelter’s wife and other family members received a text message at 6:18 a.m. that read, “Dad went to war last night… I don’t wanna say more because I don’t wanna implicate anybody,” based on the affidavit. A subsequent text warned his family to vacate their home because “armed and trigger-happy” individuals would be arriving.
In addition to her phone, Mr. Boelter’s wife allowed law enforcement to search her vehicle, which uncovered two handguns, approximately $10,000 in cash, and family members’ passports, which were in the car when police arrived at the residence, as per the affidavit.
Authorities have stated that the investigation will determine if Mr. Boelter’s wife was complicit in or aware of the suspect’s plans beforehand. According to media reports, he has five children.
State Senator John Hoffman and his wife were also shot.
At around 7 a.m. on Saturday, Mr. Boelter encountered an individual at a bus stop in Minneapolis and ultimately offered to purchase his Buick with cash, according to prosecutors.
Investigators located the Buick yesterday in rural Sibley County, near his listed home address, about an hour’s drive southwest of Minneapolis. Inside the vehicle, officers found a handwritten letter addressed to the FBI, in which Mr. Boelter identified himself and confessed to the shootings, as indicated by the affidavit.
More than 20 SWAT teams searched the area, supported by surveillance aircraft, officials reported. Mr. Boelter, armed, crawled from a wooded area and surrendered peacefully to law enforcement in a field.
This incident marks the latest in a growing trend of high-profile political violence in the country, which also includes the attempted assassination of Republican Donald Trump last year and an arson attack on Democratic Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s residence in April.
Minnesota US Senator Amy Klobuchar shared on social media a text message from Yvette Hoffman yesterday evening, revealing that her husband, John, had been shot nine times, while she herself was shot eight times.
“We are both incredibly lucky to be alive,” Yvette Hoffman wrote. “We are gutted and devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark.”
