Former pastor and Minnesota shooting suspect Vance Luther Boelter made it to the homes of other lawmakers on the night he murdered Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, in addition to injuring Minnesota Sen. John Hoffman and his wife.
The 57-year-old suspect will face federal charges, which include stalking an elected official and shooting at two officials. Authorities took Boelter into custody on Sunday following a manhunt that lasted 36 hours.
During a Monday news conference, Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson said that Boelter “planned his attack carefully” by researching his intended victims and their families through the internet and by conducting surveillance of their homes.
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After wounding the Hoffmans, Boelter made his way to the home of another state representative in Maple Grove. The lawmaker, however, was on vacation and not home at the time, according to Thompson.
Boelter reportedly went to the home of a state senator in New Hope, but he left after the police arrived. A police officer came to conduct a wellness check on the senator’s house in New Hope following the shooting at the Hoffmans’ residence, according to Thompson.
“When the New Hope officer arrived at the scene, she saw Boelter’s black SUV parked down the block with the lights on,” the acting U.S. attorney said. “The New Hope police officer believed that Boelter was a police officer who had been dispatched to the scene to check on the status of the state senator.”
“The New Hope police officer pulled up next to Boelter in his car and rolled down her window and attempted to speak with him, but Boelter did not respond,” Thompson said. “According to the officer, he just sat there and stared straight ahead, so the New Hope police officer who had been dispatched to the scene proceeded to the state senator’s home, and she waited for other law enforcement.”
By the time other law enforcement officers arrived, Boelter had already fled the scene, according to Thompson.
While the acting U.S. attorney and the FBI did not identify the other lawmakers Boelter allegedly targeted, Sen. Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope, said in a Monday statement that she had learned the suspect had been parked near her home on Saturday morning.
“I am so grateful for the heroic work of the New Hope Police Department and its officers. Their quick action saved my life,” Rest stated.
The Minnesota senator praised the authorities for apprehending the suspect, but she also expressed sadness over the deaths of Hortman and her husband, Mark, and she offered up a prayer on behalf of John and Yvette Hoffman.
In a Monday U.S. Department of Justice statement, FBI Director Kash Patel said that Boelter had a list of potential victims he planned to target.
“This type of violence is unacceptable, and the FBI stands united with our law enforcement partners to find and hold accountable anyone who commits such despicable acts,” Patel said. “I commend all the law enforcement officers who worked throughout the weekend to find the defendant and take him into custody.”
Court documents show Boelter is accused of equipping himself with firearms and body armor and then driving to the Hoffmans’ house, where he repeatedly knocked on the door and claimed to be a police officer.
The Hoffmans attempted to close the door after seeing that Boelter was wearing a face mask, but the suspect reportedly shot the senator and his wife. After failing to make contact with other lawmakers he allegedly planned to target, Boelter moved on to the home of Rep. Hortman and her husband, where he fatally shot the pair.
Boelter abandoned his SUV and initially fled the scene on foot, and law enforcement on the scene conducted a search of the suspect’s vehicle, according to the DOJ.
Law enforcement officers discovered five firearms, ammunition and notebooks containing the names of dozens of Minnesota state and federal elected officials. Several notebooks that the officers recovered from the SUV also contained the officials’ addresses.
“This was a horrific act of targeted violence,” Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of the FBI Minneapolis Field Office said. “A gunman, impersonating a police officer, deliberately lured public servants to their own doorstep and opened fire. A Minnesota lawmaker and her spouse were murdered in cold blood, and others wounded, simply for serving as elected officials.”
“This is not only unacceptable — it is an attack on the democratic values that define this nation. This marked the largest manhunt in Minnesota’s history, and it would not have been possible without the extraordinary partnership between federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies,” the special agent added.
“The tireless coordination and commitment ensured Boelter was located and taken into custody without further incident,” Winston Sr. continued. “The FBI remains steadfast in our pursuit of justice. Our thoughts are with the victims, their families, and the communities they served.”
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
