Manhunt Begins For 57-year-old Suspect Behind Killing Of Minnesota Lawmaker , Wife
Authorities have identified 57-year-old Vance Boelter as the suspect in the targeted shootings of Minnesota lawmakers Melissa Hortman and John Hoffman.
Sources confirmed his identity to the Associated Press. Documents obtained show Boelter lives in Green Isle, Minnesota.
He was appointed to the Governor’s Workforce Development Council in 2016 under former Gov. Mark Dayton and again in 2019 under Governor Tim Walz. His most recent term ended in January 2023.
Democratic House Speaker, Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were shot and killed early Saturday at their Brooklyn Park home.
Walz called the killings a “politically motivated assassination.”
In a news conference Saturday morning, Walz also confirmed that DFL State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were shot multiple times in their Champlin home.
A nephew of the couple wrote on social media that they were each shot five or six times.
The Hoffmans underwent surgery at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids. Walz said he was “cautiously optimistic” about their survival.
Walz said, “Our state lost a great leader, and I lost the dearest of friends. Speaker Hortman was someone who served the state of Minnesota with grace, compassion, humor and a sense of service.
“She was a formidable public servant, a fixture and a giant in Minnesota. She woke up every day determined to make this state a better place. She is irreplaceable and will be missed by so many.”
Authorities say the gunman posed as a police officer to carry out both attacks.
A manhunt is ongoing in Brooklyn Park, and a shelter-in-place order remains in effect for surrounding neighborhoods.
Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent, Drewy Evans said police first responded to the Hoffman home around 2 a.m.
At 3:35 a.m., officers were called to they Hortman residence for a similar shooting.
Brooklyn Park officers had been proactively checking on Hortman due to her proximity toy Hoffman. When they arrived, they encountered the suspect.
He fired at the officers. They returned fire, but he managed to escape.
Hortman had served in the Minnesota House since 2004. She was House Speaker from 2019 to early 2025.
She and her husband are survived by their two children.
All other Minnesota lawmakers are now under protective custody in coordination with state and local law enforcement.
Officials from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are also assisting in the investigation.
