Accused Minnesota shooter allegedly went to homes of two other officials

Accused Minnesota shooter allegedly went to homes of two other officials

MINNEAPOLIS — The man charged with shooting two Democratic lawmakers and their spouses this weekend visited the homes of at least two other Minnesota elected officials as he carried out the attacks, authorities alleged on Monday.

Joseph H. Thompson, acting U.S. attorney for the District of Minnesota, said Vance Luther Boelter stopped at the homes of a state representative in Maple Grove and a state senator in New Hope in between attacks that killed state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and left state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, seriously injured.

Thompson did not identify the other two elected officials.

“Boelter planned his attack carefully,” Thompson said at a news conference Monday. “He researched his victims and their families.”

Boelter was taken into custody Sunday night in a rural area near Green Isle, Minnesota, where he owned a home, after a nearly two-day search involving more than 100 officers. He is expected to make initial appearances in both state and federal court on Monday.

Hennepin County District Attorney Mary Moriarty said her office had filed initial charges of second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder to secure a warrant for Boelter’s arrest. But Moriarty added she intends to pursue a first-degree murder case once state prosecutors can present their case to a grand jury

“We are at early stages,” she said. “We will review all of the evidence from law enforcement as it comes in and are working with our law enforcement partners.”

Thompson said his office had filed six federal counts against Boelter, including stalking, shooting the Hoffmans and the Hortmans with firearms, and two counts of murder tied to the Hortmans’ deaths. The latter could expose Boelter to a potential death sentence should he be convicted.

Authorities have alleged Boelter opened fire on Hoffman and his wife in the quiet Minneapolis suburb of Champlin early Saturday before driving about 10 miles to the neighboring suburb of Brooklyn Park, home of state Hortman, the former speaker of the Minnesota House. Hortman and her husband were shot to death, while Hoffman and his wife survived and remain hospitalized in serious condition.

Investigators have said Boelter posed as a police officer to gain entry to both homes, then fled after a shootout with police after the second of the two attacks.

This booking photo released by the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office on June 16, 2025, shows Vance Boelter at the Hennepin County Jail in Minnesota.

As the manhunt intensified Sunday, authorities in Green Isle found a car associated with Boelter and seized what they described as several items relevant to the investigation. Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said the search coalesced around Boelter’s property in Green Isle later that evening.

Boelter negotiated with authorities for what Evans described Monday as a “relatively short period of time” before surrendering.

“They were moving in, and he was cooperating,” Evans said. “It wasn’t a prolonged negotiation with him. … I believe he was just in a position where he just had to give up.”

Evans declined to say whether Boelter had continued to cooperate with the investigation after his arrest.

Greg Fuchs, Boelter’s brother-in-law, told The Washington Post on Monday that the family would have no comment.

Police said they have not found a “traditional manifesto” associated with Boelter laying out a motive for the crimes. Still, officials have said they found in one of Boelter’s cars a roster of dozens of names, including Democratic lawmakers and people who are supportive of abortion rights and other liberal causes.

They also found “No Kings” fliers, sparking worries for law enforcement that the suspect may have wanted to attack one of Saturday’s gatherings protesting President Donald Trump.

The list included U.S. Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minnesota) and, according to a Democratic lawmaker from Wisconsin, at least 11 Democratic legislators from that state. Other names on the list came from across the Midwest, including Michigan, Illinois and Iowa, according to investigators.

Moriarty said a conviction on state first-degree murder charges could lead to a sentence of up to life without parole.

“It is a frightening time we are living in,” she said. “Political violence is prevalent, and the way that we talk to and about each other has raised the tension to unfathomable levels. We cannot continue on in this way.”

Roebuck reported from Washington.

This is a developing story and will be updated.