Minnesota state lawmakers shot, search underway for suspect
WASHINGTON: Authorities on Saturday asked residents of two Minneapolis suburbs to stay indoors as they searched for a suspect posing as a police officer who shot two Democratic state lawmakers and their spouses in their homes, according to local media reports.
The conditions of the victims were not immediately known.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz will speak to reporters shortly to "address violence targeted at legislators," his office said.
Walz said in a post on X that he was "briefed this morning on an ongoing situation involving targeted shootings in Champlin and Brooklyn Park. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety and local law enforcement are on the scene."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Police say one ‘critically injured' in shooting at US protest
WASHINGTON: A shooting at a protest against President Donald Trump's policies in the western state of Utah left one person with 'life-threatening injuries,' police said, adding that three others were taken into custody. Police said the incident occurred around 8:00 pm Saturday (0200 GMT Sunday) in Utah's capital Salt Lake City during a protest that drew about 10,000 people -- one of several 'No Kings' demonstrations across the United States rallying against Trump. 'We can confirm the shooting resulted in one person being critically injured. The patient has been taken to a hospital with life-threatening (injuries),' said the Salt Lake City police department in a social media post, adding that they had 'a person of interest in custody.' Police Chief Brian Redd stressed during a news conference that the events leading up to the shooting 'were very peaceful,' adding that the first person taken in custody had a gunshot wound and was transported to the hospital. Two other individuals involved in the incident were also taken into custody, he said. 'At this time, there is... no ongoing threats to the public,' Redd said, adding that it was too early in their investigation to say if the shooting was politically motivated. City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said 'this act of violence does not define' Salt Lake City -- a Democratic bastion in the deep-red Republican state of Utah. 'The purpose of today's demonstration was a powerful and peaceful expression until this event and that cannot be overshadowed or silenced by a single act meant to harm,' she said. 'We are a nation that needs our First Amendment right, we deserve to protest in peace. And what happened today I hope will not silence the voices of the public who deserve to have their voices heard.'
The Sun
4 hours ago
- The Sun
Minnesota manhunt underway for suspect in deadly shooting of Democratic state lawmakers
MINNEAPOLIS: Minnesota Police and the FBI kept up a massive manhunt on Saturday evening for a gunman posing as a police officer who killed a senior Democratic state assemblywoman and her husband in what Governor Tim Walz called a 'politically motivated assassination.' The suspect, identified as 57-year-old Vance Luther Boelter, also allegedly shot and wounded a second lawmaker and his spouse, according to law enforcement officials and the FBI. He fled on foot after firing at police at the home of slain former Minnesota House speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. Law enforcement officials said the suspect abandoned a vehicle that looked like a police SUV, in which officers found a 'manifesto' and a target list of other politicians and institutions. Boelter should be considered armed and dangerous and is believed to still be in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans told a news briefing, adding that it was too soon to determine a motive. The suspect had links to evangelical ministries and claimed to be a security expert with experience in the Gaza Strip and Africa, according to online postings and public records reviewed by Reuters. Boelter also described himself online as a former employee of food service companies and was appointed in 2016 by Walz' predecessor to the advisory Governor's Workforce Development Board, according to state records. David Carlson, 59, told Reuters that he has been sharing a house in Minneapolis with Boelter for a little more than a year and last saw him on Friday night. Then about 6 a.m. (1100 GMT) on Saturday, he received a text from Boelter. 'He said that he might be dead soon,' said Carlson, who called police. The list found in the vehicle abandoned by the suspect contained about 70 names, including abortion providers, and lawmakers in Minnesota and other states, CNN reported, citing law enforcement sources. Officials said the Hortmans and the other victims - state Senator John Hoffman and his wife - were on the list. ABC News, also citing law enforcement officials, said the list included dozens of Minnesota Democrats including Walz, U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar, Senator Tina Smith and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. POLITICAL MOTIVATION? Melissa Hortman, a 55-year-old mother of two who had served 20 years in the Minnesota House of Representatives, was remembered by Walz as someone with 'grace, compassion and tirelessness.' Walz, who was Kamala Harris' Democratic vice presidential running mate in last year's election, said the gunman went to the Hortmans' residence after shooting the Hoffmans multiple times in their home in the nearby town of Champlin. The Hoffmans underwent surgery, Walz said, adding that he was 'cautiously optimistic' that they would survive 'this assassination attempt.' 'This was an act of targeted political violence,' he said. 'Peaceful discourse is the foundation of our democracy. We don't settle our differences with violence or at gunpoint.' The shootings prompted reactions of shock and horror from Republican and Democratic politicians across the country and calls for dialing back increasingly divisive political rhetoric. The incident comes on the heels of a heated hearing in Congress on Thursday, in which Walz and two other Democratic governors defended their states' policies to maintain sanctuary for undocumented immigrants, drawing attacks from Republicans who support Trump's aggressive immigration crackdown. The Minnesota State Patrol chief, Colonel Christina Bogojevic, said police had found flyers in the suspect's vehicle with 'No Kings' printed on them but that he had no direct links to the thousands of nationwide 'No Kings' protests on Saturday against President Donald Trump's policies. The protests were timed to counter Trump's long-sought military parade in Washington. The organizing No Kings Coalition canceled all protests in Minnesota, citing a shelter-in-place order and the suspect's at-large status. Trump said he was briefed on the 'terrible shooting that took place in Minnesota, which appears to be a targeted attack against State Lawmakers.' 'Such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America. God Bless the great people of Minnesota, a truly great place!' Trump said in a statement. POLICE IMPERSONATOR Hortman and her husband were shot dead in their home in Brooklyn Park, Walz said. The Minneapolis suburb is in the northern part of Hennepin County, a Democratic stronghold in a state where Republicans have made gains in recent years. Before Hortman's killing, the Minnesota House of Representatives she served in was evenly split 67-67 between Democrats and Republicans. The FBI released photos of Boelter, opens new tab wearing a rubber mask in a police-like uniform and offered a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction. Law enforcement officials said the gunman attacked the Hoffmans around 2 a.m. CDT (0700 GMT), then drove about 5 miles (8 km) to the Hortmans' residence. Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said a 'very intuitive' police sergeant who responded to the Hoffman attack asked colleagues to 'proactively' check the Hortmans' home. The two officers arriving at the Hortmans' residence saw a police-like vehicle with lights on and were immediately fired upon by the suspect. Bruley said they returned fire, but the suspect ran. POLITICAL VIOLENCE SURGE The pre-dawn Minnesota killings come amid a surge in U.S. political attacks in recent years, underscoring the dark side of the nation's deepening political divisions. These include the attempted 2020 kidnapping of Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, and a man who broke into Democratic Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's residence in April and set it on fire. In July last year, then-candidate Trump escaped an assassination attempt by a gunman while speaking at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. Trump has faced criticism from some opponents over his handling of incidents involving political violence. In one of his first moves in office earlier this year, Trump pardoned nearly everyone criminally charged with participating in the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack.
Malaysian Reserve
7 hours ago
- Malaysian Reserve
‘No Kings' rallies draw massive crowds of anti-Trump protesters
PROTESTERS gathered in hundreds of cities across the US to oppose President Donald Trump's administration on Saturday, as he held a military parade in Washington. Anti-Trump activists, including labor unions and civil-rights groups organized the nationwide demonstrations under the banner of 'No Kings,' denouncing what they say are Trump's authoritarian tendencies — and the parade being held on his 79th birthday. The 'day of defiance' was initially called to protest the US president's turning the Army's 250th birthday celebration into an expansive show of military hardware. It gained urgency after federal immigration raids in Los Angeles sparked protests and political strife between Trump and Democratic leaders. Major demonstrations took place in Philadelphia, the cradle of US independence, Chicago and across California, including San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles, where the opposition to immigration raids prompted Trump to seize control of the state's National Guard and deploy US Marines. In New York, marchers gathered at Bryant Park in midtown Manhattan and marched down Fifth Avenue. The Seattle Police Department placed the crowd size in that city in excess of 70,000 and said there were no confrontations or property destruction. 'Let's make sure we show the world the best of Los Angeles and our country,' Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said as protests got underway. 'Let's stand in contrast to the provocation, escalation and violence.' The city's police chief Jim McDonnell predicted a turnout of tens of thousands, numbers that appeared to materialize across the city. After a largely peaceful day, hundreds of law enforcement officers swarmed a small section of the city's downtown as the main protest ended. They guarded key government buildings including city hall and the federal building while dispersing demonstrators with pepper balls, flash bangs and less lethal projectiles. Protesters hurled some bottles and rocks and shot fireworks, according to police. Scenes showed demonstrators pushing forward towards police barricades and then being pushed back by officers. The day was earlier marred when two Democratic state politicians in Minnesota were shot, one of them fatally, in what Trump said was likely a targeted attack. 'No Kings' canceled its events across the state as law enforcement hunted for the shooter. Read More: Two Minnesota Democratic Lawmakers Shot in 'Targeted' Attack In Texas, authorities temporarily evacuated the state capitol complex in Austin after receiving threats against state lawmakers planning to attend a 'No Kings' protest. A suspect was arrested later Saturday at a traffic stop in the town of La Grange, the Texas Department of Public Safety said on social media. About 2,000 events were planned, from the West Coast to Miami and the Midwest to New England. Organizers explicitly excluded Washington from the protests, saying they wanted to draw a contrast with the Army parade and make 'everywhere else the story of America' on the day. About 200 protesters assembled anyway about a 20-minute walk from the White House, AP reported. In Louisville, Kentucky, a crowd of thousands sang in unison and cheered motorists who honked their horns in support, broadcaster WHAS reported. US Senator Bernie Sanders said he drew more than 500 people in Stowe, Vermont, at a protest meant to say no 'to the authoritarianism that has taken hold of our country.' –BLOOMBERG
