2025 shootings of Minnesota legislators
| 2025 shootings of Minnesota legislators | |
|---|---|
Brooklyn Park Champlin Brooklyn Park Champlin | |
| Location | Brooklyn Park and Champlin, Minnesota, United States |
| Date | June 14, 2025 2:00 – 3:35 a.m. (CDT) |
| Target | Legislators |
Attack type | Spree shooting, assassination, attempted assassination |
| Deaths | 2 |
Injured | 2 |
On June 14, 2025, Melissa Hortman, a Democratic–Farmer–Labor (DFL) Minnesota state representative, was shot dead along with her husband in her home in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, United States. John Hoffman, a DFL state senator, and his wife Yvette were also shot in their home in nearby Champlin, and both survived.
Police found the suspected shooter at Hortman's home and fired at them before escaping. The suspected shooter was dressed as a police officer.
Suspect
Vance Luther Boelter was identified as the suspect by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension through the vehicle left behind at the Hortman home.[1] Boelter is a 57-year-old businessman.[2]
The suspect had a list of 70 possible targets including Hortman and Hoffman, Tim Walz, Ilhan Omar, Tina Smith, and Keith Ellison. Well known abortion rights activists and abortion providers were also listed.[3]
Arrest
On June 15, 2025, Boelter was arrested in a field, roughly 50 miles (80 km) southwest of Minneapolis. His capture ended a two-day manhunt involving hundreds of officers and 20 SWAT teams. Officials stated that the search was the largest manhunt in Minnesota history.[4][5] Boelter was initially charged by Brooklyn Park police with two counts of second-degree murder in the killings of former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, and two counts of attempted second-degree murder related to the shootings of Senator John Hoffman and his wife.[6] He later appeared in federal court on June 16, 2025, where he was federally charged with two counts of murder with a firearm, two additional counts of firearms offenses, and two counts of stalking.[7]
References
- ↑ Nace, Aki (June 14, 2025). "Person of interest in Minnesota DFL lawmaker shootings identified as Vance Boelter". CBS News. Retrieved June 14, 2025.
- ↑ Raji, Tobi (June 14, 2025). "Live updates: Manhunt underway for suspect in shooting that killed a Minnesota lawmaker". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved June 14, 2025.
- ↑ Staff, Intelligencer (2025-06-14). "Minnesota Manhunt Continues: Live Updates". Intelligencer. Retrieved 2025-06-15.
Carlson said that the suspect worked at a funeral home, owned firearms and had voted for Donald Trump last year. He was a devout Christian who strongly opposed abortion, but had never mentioned either of the lawmakers who were shot, Carlson said, and had generally avoided talking about politics.
- ↑ Turtinen, Melissa (June 15, 2025). "Live updates: MN lawmaker shooting suspect Vance Boelter arrested after manhunt". FOX 9. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
- ↑ Stefanescu, Victor (June 16, 2025). "The timeline: The terror began at 2 a.m. Saturday. The manhunt ended in a field nearly two days later". Star Tribune. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
- ↑ Karnowski, Steve; Lamy, Obed; Balsamo, Mike; Durkin Richer, Alanna (June 15, 2025). "Man suspected of shooting 2 Minnesota lawmakers is caught following huge search". The Associated Press. Retrieved June 15, 2025.
- ↑ "Minnesota shootings suspect faces 6 federal charges and state 1st-degree murder charges, prosecutors say". CNN. June 16, 2025. Retrieved June 16, 2025.