Authorities still searching for suspect in shooting of 2 Minnesota state lawmakers
Democratic former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were killed in their Brooklyn Park home. Sen. John Hoffman, also a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette, were injured at their Champlin address, about 9 miles (about 15 kilometers) away.
Authorities identified the suspect as 57-year-old Vance Boelter, and the FBI issued a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
Authorities displayed a photo taken Saturday of Boelter wearing a tan cowboy hat and asked the public to report sightings. Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said investigators obtained video as well.
He did not give details on a possible motive.
Boelter is a former political appointee who served on the same state workforce development board as Hoffman, records show, though it was not clear if or how well they knew each other.
The early morning attacks prompted warnings to other elected officials around the state and the cancellation of planned "No Kings" demonstrations against President Donald Trump, though some went ahead anyway. Authorities said the suspect had "No Kings" flyers in his car and writings mentioning the names of the victims as well as other lawmakers and officials, though they could not say if he had any other specific targets.
A Minnesota official told The Associated Press that the suspect's writings also contained information targeting prominent lawmakers who have been outspoken in favor of abortion rights. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing.
The shootings happened at a time when political leaders nationwide have been attacked, harassed and intimidated amid deep political divisions.
"We must all, in Minnesota and across the country, stand against all forms of political violence," Walz, a Democrat, said at a news conference. "Those responsible for this will be held accountable."
The governor also ordered flags to fly at half-staff in Hortman's honor.
Law enforcement agents recovered several AK-style firearms from the suspect's vehicle, and he was believed to still be armed with a pistol, a person familiar with the matter told AP. The person could not publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.
An overnight shooting
Police responded to reports of gunfire at the Hoffmans' home shortly after 2 a.m., Champlin police said, and found the couple with multiple gunshot wounds.
After seeing who the victims were, police sent officers to proactively check on Hortman's home. There they encountered what appeared to be a police vehicle and a man dressed as an officer at the door, leaving the house.
"When officers confronted him, the individual immediately fired upon the officers who exchanged gunfire, and the suspect retreated back into the home" and escaped on foot, Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said.
Multiple bullet holes could be seen in the front door of Hoffman's home.
John and Yvette Hoffman each underwent surgery, according to Walz.
"We are cautiously optimistic they will survive this assassination attempt," the governor said at a morning news conference.
Trump said in a statement that the FBI would join in the investigation.
"Our Attorney General, Pam Bondi, and the FBI, are investigating the situation, and they will be prosecuting anyone involved to the fullest extent of the law. Such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America. God Bless the great people of Minnesota, a truly great place!"
Two Democratic lawmakers targeted
Hortman, 55, had been the top Democratic leader in the state House since 2017. She led Democrats in a three-week walkout at the beginning of this year's session in a power struggle with Republicans. Under a power sharing agreement, she turned the gavel over to Republican Rep. Lisa Demuth and assumed the title speaker emerita.
Hortman used her position as speaker in 2023 to help champion expanded protections for abortion rights, including legislation to solidify Minnesota's status as a refuge for patients from restrictive states who travel to the state to seek abortions -- and to protect providers who serve them.
Walz called her a "formidable public servant, a fixture and a giant in Minnesota."
"She woke up every day, determined to make this state a better place," he said. "She is irreplaceable."
Hortman and her husband had two adult children.
The initial autopsy reports from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office gave their cause of death as "multiple gunshot wounds."
The reports said Melissa Hortman died at the scene while her husband was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Hoffman, 60, was first elected in 2012 and was chair of the Senate Human Services Committee, which oversees one of the biggest parts of the state budget. He and his wife have one daughter.
State Patrol Col. Christina Bogojevic asked people "out of an abundance of caution" not to attend "No Kings" protests. Bogojevic said authorities did not have any direct evidence that the protests would be targeted, but noted the "No Kings" flyers in the car.
Organizers announced that all demonstrations in the state were canceled, but many people still showed up for protests at the Capitol and elsewhere in the Twin Cities area.
The suspect
Boelter was appointed to the workforce development board in 2016 and then reappointed in 2019 to a four-year term that expired in 2023, state records show.
Corporate records show Boelter's wife filed to create a company called Praetorian Guard Security Services LLC with the same Green Isle mailing address listed for the couple. On a website for the business, Boelter's wife is listed as president and CEO, while he is listed as director of security patrols.
The homepage says it provides armed security for property and events and features a photo of an SUV painted in a two-tone black and silver pattern similar to a police vehicle, with a light bar across the roof and "Praetorian" painted across the doors. Another photo shows a man in black tactical gear with a military-style helmet and a ballistic vest.
An online resume says Boelter is a security contractor who has worked in the Middle East and Africa, in addition to past managerial roles at companies in Minnesota.
Boelter texted friends at a Minneapolis residence, where he had rented a room and would stay one or two nights a week, to say he had "made some choices," the Minnesota Star Tribune reported.
In the messages, read to reporters by David Carlson, Boelter did not specify what he had done but said: "I'm going to be gone for a while. May be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know I love you guys both and I wish it hadn't gone this way. ... I'm sorry for all the trouble this has caused."
A former next-door neighbor in Inver Grove Heights, where Boelter used to live, said he hardly knew him but remembers his daughters because they kayaked and ice skated on the pond behind the homes.
"It's really sad for the kids, very, very nice kids," Michael Cassidy said. He added that the suspect's wife once came over to pray with his wife and daughter.
Massive search
Hundreds of police and sheriff deputies, some in tactical gear with assault-style weapons, were scattered throughout the town. Some checkpoints were set up. Police lifted a shelter-in-place order in the afternoon, saying they had reason to believe the suspect was no longer in the area.
"This is crazy, someone going after representatives," said Brooklyn Park resident Douglas Thompson, 62. "This is wrong. I'm hoping they'll catch them."
Political violence
Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth, a Republican from Cold Spring, called the attack "evil" and said she was "heartbroken beyond words" by the killings.
The shootings are the latest in a series of attacks against lawmakers across parties.
In April a suspect set fire to the home of Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, forcing him and his family to flee during the Jewish holiday of Passover. The suspect said he planned to beat Shapiro with a small sledgehammer if he found him, according to court documents.
In July 2024, Trump was grazed on the ear by one of a hail of bullets that killed a Trump supporter. Two months later a man with a rifle was discovered near the president's Florida golf course and arrested.
Other incidents include a 2022 hammer attack on the husband of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in their San Francisco home and a 2020 plot by anti-government extremists to kidnap Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and start a civil war.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said he asked Capitol Police to "immediately increase security" for Minnesota Democratic Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith. He also asked Majority Leader John Thune, a Republican, to hold a briefing on member security.
"Condemning violence is important but it is not enough," Schumer said on the social platform X. "We must also confront the toxic forces radicalizing individuals and we must do more to protect one another, our democracy, and the values that bind us as Americans."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Mainichi
9 hours ago
- The Mainichi
Russia hammers Kyiv in largest missile and drone barrage since war in Ukraine began
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) -- Waves of drone and missile attacks targeted Kyiv overnight into Friday in the largest aerial attack since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began more than three years ago, injuring 23 people and inflicting severe damage across multiple districts of the capital in a seven-hour onslaught. Russia launched 550 drones and missiles across Ukraine during the night, the country's air force said. The majority were Shahed drones, but Russia also launched 11 missiles in the attack. "It was a harsh, sleepless night," Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Russia is escalating its long-range attacks on Ukrainian cities. Less than a week ago Russia launched its previous largest aerial assault of the war. That strategy has coincided with a new push by Russia's bigger forces along parts of the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, where Ukrainian troops are under severe pressure. Trump 'not happy' with Russia's attacks The attack on Kyiv began the same day a phone call took place between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Zelenskyy called the timing of the strikes a deliberate signal that Moscow has no intention of ending the war. Trump said he would call Zelenskyy on Friday. U.S-led international peace efforts have been fruitless so far. When asked if he made any progress with Putin on a deal to end the fighting in Ukraine, he said: "No, I didn't make any progress with him today at all." "I'm not happy about that. I'm not happy about that," Trump said of Russia's war in Ukraine. According to Yuri Ushakov, Putin's foreign affairs adviser, the Russian leader emphasized that Moscow will seek to achieve its goals in Ukraine and remove the "root causes" of the conflict. "Russia will not back down from these goals," Ushakov told reporters after the call. Putin has argued he sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022 to fend off a threat to Russia posed by Ukraine's push to join NATO and to protect Russian speakers in Ukraine, arguments rejected by Kyiv and its allies. He insisted any prospective peace deal must see Ukraine abandon its NATO bid and recognize Russia's territorial gains. Pentagon halts deliveries of air defense missiles The U.S. has paused some shipments of military aid to Ukraine, including crucial air defense missiles. Ukraine's main European backers are considering how they can help pick up the slack. Zelenskyy says plans are afoot to build up Ukraine's domestic arms industry, but scaling up will take time. Throughout the night, Associated Press journalists in Kyiv heard the constant buzzing of drones overhead and the sound of explosions and intense machine gun fire as Ukrainian forces tried to intercept the aerial assault. "Absolutely horrible and sleepless night in Kyiv," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on social media platform X. "One of the worst so far." Ukraine's Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko described "families running into metro stations, basements, underground parking garages, mass destruction in the heart of our capital." "What Kyiv endured last night, cannot be called anything but a deliberate act of terror," she wrote on X. Kyiv was the primary target of the countrywide attack. At least 14 people were hospitalized, according to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Russia strikes 5 Ukrainian regions Ukrainian air defenses shot down 270 targets, including two cruise missiles. Another 208 targets were lost from radar and presumed jammed. Russia successfully hit eight locations with nine missiles and 63 drones. Debris from intercepted drones fell across at least 33 sites. In addition to the capital, the Dnipropetrovsk, Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Kyiv regions also sustained damage, Zelenskyy said. Emergency services reported damage in at least five of the capital's 10 districts. In Solomianskyi district, a five-story residential building was partially destroyed and the roof of a seven-story building caught fire. Fires also broke out at a warehouse, a garage complex and an auto repair facility. In Sviatoshynskyi district, a strike hit a 14-story residential building, sparking a fire. Several vehicles also caught fire nearby. Blazes were also reported at non-residential facilities. In Shevchenkivskyi district, an eight-story building came under attack, with the first floor sustaining damage. Falling debris was recorded in Darnytskyi and Holosiivskyi districts. Ukraine's national railway operator, Ukrzaliznytsia, said drone strikes damaged rail infrastructure in Kyiv.
Japan Today
11 hours ago
- Japan Today
68-year-old woman found dead at home; husband missing
A 68-year-old woman was found dead by her son at their house in Daito City, Osaka Prefecture, on Thursday. The woman's husband, who is in his early 80s, has gone missing, police said. According to police, the woman's son, who is in his 40s, found her body at around 8:55 p.m., Kansai TV reported. Police said the victim, Kazuko Sato, was lying face-up on her futon in a Japanese-style room on the third floor. There were strangulation marks around her neck and she was confirmed dead at the scene. Police said they have not been able to contact the victim's husband. A note was left at the scene, in which he alluded to having killed his wife. In addition to the note, a thin rope believed to have been used to strangle the victim, was found at the scene. © Japan Today
Japan Times
14 hours ago
- Japan Times
Trump tax bill hits Republican resistance in House ahead of vote
U.S. President Donald Trump's multitrillion-dollar tax bill is running into Republican resistance in the House as moderate and ultra-conservative GOP lawmakers threaten to defy him and sink his domestic agenda. House lawmakers are returning to Washington from a holiday week to vote Wednesday on the Senate version of the bill, which squeaked through that chamber on Vice President JD Vance's tie-breaking vote. The House passed its own version of the measure in May by a one-vote margin. But several Republicans who were strong-armed into voting for that bill are now vowing to oppose the Senate-passed measure, putting Trump's self-imposed July 4 deadline at risk. House Speaker Mike Johnson can afford to lose only three Republican votes in the face of unified Democratic opposition, if all members are present and voting. Republicans Warren Davidson and Thomas Massie, who voted against the bill in May, remain firm no votes. Johnson's No. 2, Steve Scalise, projected optimism on Tuesday. "We're going to get it done tomorrow,' he told reporters. But Rep. Chip Roy, a hard-line conservative who balked at the cost of the House's earlier bill but ultimately supported it, said "a significant number' of lawmakers are concerned about the Senate version of the bill. "I have very strong concerns and am not very inclined to support,' the Texas Republican said. Rep. Chip Roy, a hard-line conservative, said "a significant number' of lawmakers are concerned about the Senate version of the bill. | Bloomberg The GOP holdouts are pushing for major — and sometimes competing — changes to the Senate bill, including some troubled by the scale of Medicaid cuts and others demanding deeper spending reductions. Still, House Ways and Means chairman Jason Smith said Tuesday that he's confident the bill will pass. Trump, the GOP's most forceful whip, quickly turned his attention from the Senate to the House, putting public pressure on Republicans to back the bill. "We can have all of this right now, but only if the House GOP UNITES, ignores its occasional "GRANDSTANDERS' (You know who you are!)' Trump posted on Tuesday. Ultraconservatives Several ultraconservatives in the House Freedom Caucus are among the loudest naysayers, vowing to oppose the bill over the deficit increases projected by the Joint Committee on Taxation. Freedom Caucus member Andy Ogles called the current version a "dud' that "guts key Trump provisions' to comply with strict Senate rules. Certain parts of the House bill were scrapped in the Senate because of a fast-track procedural tactic that allowed for a simple majority vote. Ogles introduced an amendment to replace the entire bill with the House version passed in May. But any changes to the legislation would need to be reconciled with the Senate, a process that could take weeks given the tight margins. Rep. Ralph Norman said he would vote no, adding that it's "tough sledding' if the Senate-passed bill goes to the floor. Rep. Victoria Spartz, who frequently waffles on her positions, went so far as to say the chamber will have a "decision to make' if Johnson brings the Senate bill to the floor, signaling his speakership could be in jeopardy. Moderates The Senate has already negotiated a deal with the House on one of the most contentious provisions for swing-district Republicans: the state and local tax deduction cap. Rep. Ralph Norman said he would vote no, adding that it's "tough sledding' if the Senate-passed bill goes to the floor. | bloomberg The Senate bill increases the SALT cap to $40,000 annually for a five-year period, when it would then snap back to the current $10,000 limit. The House bill was more generous amid pushback from Republicans from New York, California and New Jersey. Most of the so-called SALT caucus ultimately supported the Senate deal as the best they could get. But New York's Nick LaLota has said the deal isn't enough and that he would vote no on the bill. Moderates are also blasting the deeper Medicaid cuts in the Senate bill. "I will not support a final bill that eliminates vital funding streams our hospitals rely on, including provider taxes and state directed payments, or any provisions that punish expansion states,' Rep. David Valadao wrote in a post on X Friday. Valadao led a group of 16 House Republicans who pledged not to support the bill if the Senate chose to slash the Medicaid provider tax rate beyond a permanent freeze at 6%. States often use the provider taxes, within some already existing rules, to help defray their Medicaid matching fund requirements, allowing them to bring in more federal money to make Medicaid payments to providers and expand coverage. Republican senators included a gradual reduction in the tax to medical providers to a final 3.5%, unleashing an internal debate about how rural hospitals would cope with the changes. The bill added a $50 billion fund for rural hospitals after objections from Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins and Josh Hawley. It's unclear if it will satisfy House skeptics, some of whom represent districts in metropolitan areas. Murkowski, a holdout in the Senate who pivoted to a yes vote in the final hours, told reporters after the final vote that she hopes the House continues to make changes. "The House is going look at this and recognize that we're not done yet,' Murkowski said after hours of negotiation for her vote with Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Majority Whip John Barrasso. "I would like to see a better outcome for people in this country.'
