Live Updates: Minnesota Man Charged With Murdering Lawmaker

New York Times

4 hours ago

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June 16, 2025, 5:54 a.m. ET
Ernesto LondoñoJeff Ernst and
The largest manhunt in Minnesota's history came to an end on Sunday when a man accused of assassinating a state lawmaker and shooting another was finally captured after SWAT teams used drones to track him crawling through a wooded area outside Minneapolis.
The suspect, Vance Boelter, 57, was arrested and charged, concluding an extensive two-day search that rattled Minnesotans. Mr. Boelter surrendered near Green Isle, Minn., a town where he had a home with his wife and children. The police said they searched the area after a resident spotted the suspect on a trail camera.
Mr. Boelter was charged late Sunday evening with two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder. New details emerged about the attacks against the lawmakers at their homes in the Minneapolis suburbs on Saturday. One shooting killed Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark; the other wounded State Senator John A. Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.
Mr. Boelter entered the Hoffman home by introducing himself as a police officer, and he wore a rubber mask and a bogus badge during the attacks, officials say. The couple's daughter called 911, police officers decided to check Ms. Hortman's home. They arrived to see Mr. Boelter shoot her husband through an open door, and exchanged gunfire with him before he escaped.
If the officers had not proactively gone to the Hortman home, 'I have every confidence that this would have continued throughout the day,' said Drew Evans, the head of the state's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
Here's what else to know: Next steps: Mr. Boelter is being charged under a state criminal warrant, and state officials are discussing with the F.B.I. and federal prosecutors about whether to also bring federal charges, an official from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension told reporters late Sunday. Investigators are also looking into whether anyone assisted him.
The victims: Ms. Hortman served as speaker of the Minnesota House for a six-year period that ended this year and helped pass several key policies on abortion rights, marijuana legalization and medical leave. Mr. Hoffman is a fourth-term state senator and leads the Senate's Human Services Committee. Mr. Hoffman came out of a final surgery and was recovering along with his wife, who was also shot, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota said Sunday. Read more ›
The suspect: Mr. Boelter and his wife run a private security company that promotes the use of S.U.V.s similar to those used by police departments, according to its website. The couple also appears to have run a religious nonprofit. According to the suspect's friend, he opposed abortion and had served on a state work force development board with Mr. Hoffman. Read more ›
The list: The suspect possessed a notebook that mentioned about 70 potential targets, some in neighboring states, that included politicians, civic and business leaders, and Planned Parenthood centers, according to law enforcement officials. Read more ›
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