The federal authorities in the United States stated on Monday (June 16) that the suspect accused of killing a Minnesota state representative and shooting another senator had also visited the residences of other legislators during the rampage, indicating a carefully planned attack.
Vance Boelter, 57, was arrested on Sunday (15th) evening after an extensive two-day manhunt by law enforcement, facing murder charges at the state and federal levels.
He stands accused of killing Melissa Hortman, the Democratic leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives, and her husband Mark last Saturday (14th). Additionally, Boelter has been charged with shooting State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, both of whom were wounded but survived.
Prosecutors revealed that Boelter had posed as a police officer and visited the residences of two other legislators on Saturday, apparently intending to target additional victims. Investigators found a list in his car containing the names of dozens of legislators, the majority of whom were Democrats.
Boelter appeared in court on Monday afternoon, facing two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder. The county’s chief prosecutor, Mary Moriarty, announced during a press conference on Monday that her office would seek first-degree murder charges, which carry a mandatory life sentence without parole.
Federal prosecutors have also leveled a series of charges against Boelter, including murder, which could result in the death penalty.
The case is being presided over by District Judge John F. Docherty, and currently, Boelter’s motives and intentions remain unclear.
The shocking violent attack took place around 2 a.m. on Saturday. Boelter, dressed in tactical police gear and wearing a hyper-realistic silicone mask, knocked on the door of Senator Hoffman’s home in Champlin.
Repeatedly identifying himself as a police officer, Boelter caused alarm when the Hoffman couple opened the door only to find him wearing the mask. The couple attempted to close the door, but Boelter fired multiple shots at Senator Hoffman and his wife.
Senator Hoffman sustained nine gunshot wounds, while his wife Yvette was hit by eight bullets.
Simultaneously, Boelter was driving a black Ford Explorer SUV equipped with police lights and a fake license plate bearing the word “Police.”
He then proceeded to the home of another state legislator in Maple Grove, ringing the bell at 2:24 a.m. However, the official was not at home at the time.
Authorities revealed that Boelter also visited the residence of a state senator in New Hope. A New Hope police officer, dispatched to the residence in response to the shooting at the Hoffman’s, mistook Boelter parked outside as a colleague and parked his car nearby.
“He was sitting inside the vehicle, just staring straight ahead,” said Thompson when discussing Boelter.
Prosecutors detailed that as backup officers arrived at the scene, Boelter had already left.
Shortly thereafter, law enforcement, as a precaution, went to the residence of State Representative Hortman and her husband in Brooklyn Park.
According to court documents, at 3:35 a.m. when the police arrived, they found police lights flashing on the suspect’s car while Boelter stood a few feet away from the Hortman residence facing the front door. Moments later, Boelter fired multiple shots at the Hortman residence, repeatedly hitting her husband. Boelter proceeded to enter the house, firing several more shots, resulting in the deaths of both Representative Hortman and her husband. Officers provided medical assistance, but the Hortman couple succumbed to their injuries.
Prosecutors revealed that officers engaged in gunfire with Boelter, who then fled on foot through the back door.
Following the shooting incident, authorities searched Boelter’s SUV and discovered three AK-47 assault rifles, a 9mm handgun, a gold police badge, and a list of targets.
Prosecutors stated that notebooks found in Boelter’s vehicle and residence indicated meticulous planning for the attacks. According to testimony from FBI agents, Boelter had compiled a list of over 45 elected officials, some with home addresses, “most or all of whom were Democrats.” Boelter’s notes suggested he had used various people-search websites to track addresses.
In one of the notepads, Boelter detailed that the Hortman couple had two children and provided detailed information about their residence, noting, “Big house by the golf course, two entrances with a vantage point.”
Authorities revealed that hours after the shooting, as law enforcement continued the search for Boelter, he encountered an individual at a bus station in Minneapolis and offered to purchase the person’s electric bicycle. After going to the individual’s home, Boelter attempted to buy the person’s Buick instead.
On Sunday, investigators located Boelter’s Buick in a rural area of Sibley County near his registered home address, approximately an hour’s drive southwest of Minneapolis.
Inside the car, law enforcement discovered a handwritten letter addressed to the FBI where Boelter divulged his identity and admitted to orchestrating the shooting incident.
Officials stated that with the assistance of aerial reconnaissance, over twenty tactical teams conducted a search of the area. Boelter, armed during the encounter, emerged from a field and surrendered to authorities without incident.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi remarked, “The targeted assassinations of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, as well as State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, have shocked the nation, and we grieve deeply.”
“These heinous acts of violence will be met with strict punishment: the Department of Justice will diligently prosecute the suspect within the bounds of the law and, once convicted, deliver severe penalties for the alleged criminal behavior,” she emphasized.
Kash Patel, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), declared, “The charges allege that the defendant possessed a list of potential targets and carried out violent attacks against public officials in their homes. Such violence is unacceptable, and the FBI will unite with our law enforcement partners to investigate and hold accountable any perpetrators of these despicable acts.”
“I commend all law enforcement officers who worked tirelessly over the weekend to locate and detain the suspect,” he added.
Minnesota acting Federal Prosecutor Joe Thompson voiced that the “targeted political assassinations” were unprecedented in the state’s history.
“This is an attack on our state and our democracy,” he stated. “We will not rest until he faces justice.”
Alvin M. Winston Sr., Supervisory Special Agent at the FBI field office in Minneapolis, characterized the incident as a chilling and targeted act of violence, asserting, “This behavior is not only unacceptable but is an assault on the democratic values of this nation.”
He underscored that this operation represented the largest cooperative search involving federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies in Minnesota history.
Travis Riddle, Special Agent in Charge of the St. Paul office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), expressed, “Deliberately targeting elected officials and their families is a shocking form of political violence, which has no place in our country.”
Minnesota acting Federal Prosecutor Joseph Thompson, during a Monday press conference, conveyed that “political assassinations are rarely seen…they strike at the core of our democracy.”
Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota commented after Boelter’s arrest, stating, “This cannot become normal. This cannot become how we handle political disagreements.”