by Janelle Von Pinnon
news@thenewsleaders.com
A suspect in a targeted murder and attempted murder of two Minnesota legislators is still at large as of 4:30 p.m. today. If this man, Vance Luther Boelter, is encountered call 911 immediately. He is 57 years old, 6-foot-1, 220 pounds and has brown hair and eyes. He was last seen wearing a light-colored cowboy hat, a dark shirt and light pants. Authorities say he was impersonating a police officer. He is considered armed and dangerous.
Authorities are asking the public to be cautious and not to open their door to a lone police officer. Licensed officers are working in pairs. Instead, call 911 to confirm if that police officer is supposed to be there.
Rep. Melissa Hortman, a Democrat, and her husband Mark were found shot to death in their home early Saturday morning in what appears to be a “politically-motivated assassination,” according to Gov. Tim Walz, during a press conference.
Former Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives Hortman “was a formidable public servant,” Walz said of his friend. “She is irreplaceable.
State Sen. John Hoffmann, also a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette, were both shot multiple times, underwent surgery and are in stable condition.
“We’re cautiously optimistic they will survive this assassination attempt,” Walz said.
According to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the Hoffmanns were shot in Champlin around 2 a.m. and the Hortmans were killed around 3:35 a.m. in Brooklyn Park. The two locations, just north of Minneapolis are only a few miles apart from each other.
After the Hoffmanns were shot, officers were proactively enroute to check on the Hortmans when they encountered the suspect at Hortman’s home. The suspect’s vehicle was in Hortman’s driveway and looked like a police vehicle including police lights.
Gunfire was exchanged between the suspect and the police before he fled the scene on foot.
A manifesto of other possible targets, including dozens of other Democrats from Minnesota, Gov. Walz, U.S. Rep Ilhan Omar, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith and state Attorney Gen. Keith Ellison, was found in the suspect’s vehicle, according to law enforcement officials.
Extra security has been ordered to protect these people.
