Hennepin County Sheriff's Office
Authorities captured Vance Boelter early Monday morning, concluding a two-day manhunt after he allegedly murdered former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and seriously wounded state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.
Found hiding in the woods near his home in Sibley County, Boelter surrendered by crawling to law enforcement officers after a coordinated search involving 20 tactical teams and aerial support, AP News reported. Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley described the pursuit as the largest manhunt in Minnesota history.
The shootings unfolded early Saturday morning, when police say Boelter posed as a law enforcement officer and used a modified vehicle to impersonate police. He first attacked the Hoffmans at their Champlin home, where their adult daughter called 911, reporting a masked assailant had shot her parents. Both survived multiple gunshot wounds.
Shortly thereafter, Boelter was seen by officers in nearby Brooklyn Park shooting Mark Hortman through the open doorway of the couple’s home. Officers exchanged gunfire with him before he fled into the house and escaped. Melissa Hortman was found dead inside the house.
Investigators uncovered new details in a criminal complaint and follow-up searches, including a list of about 70 names allegedly left by Boelter in the fake police car at the scene, according to AP News. The list reportedly included elected officials, community leaders, and pro-abortion advocates, though law enforcement has not confirmed a motive.
While details about Boelter’s intent remain unclear, a message he sent to friends shortly before the attacks hinted at premeditation and despair.
“I’m going to be gone for a while. May be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know I love you guys both and I wish it hadn’t gone this way,” Boelter wrote, according to the AP News report.
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar shared a message from Yvette Hoffman on X, expressing gratitude for the outpouring of prayers and support.
“John is enduring many surgeries right now and is closer every hour to being out of the woods,” Hoffman wrote. “He took 9 bullet hits. I took 8 and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive. We are gutted and devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark.”
Boelter, 57, was previously active in Minnesota politics, first appointed to the state’s Workforce Development Board in 2016 by Gov. Mark Dayton and reappointed in 2019 by Gov. Tim Walz for a four-year term. A longtime resident of Sibley County, he had worked in various service and security-related jobs, promoted himself as a private contractor, and was involved in evangelical ministry work both locally and abroad.
