A Minnesota gunman is on the loose after terrifying images showed the alleged killer wearing a creepy Halloween-style mask before launching into a ‘politically motivated assassination.’
State Representative Melissa Hortman was shot along with fellow Democrat State Senator John Hoffman in a chilling assassination spree in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Hortman and her husband were tragically killed, while Hoffman and his wife suffered serious injuries and were raced to emergency surgery, but officials say they are ‘cautiously optimistic’ they will recover.
The suspect has been identified as 57-year-old Vance Boelter – an employee of security company Praetorian Guard Security, where he works as the director of security patrols, according to the website.
Chilling photos that emerged Saturday afternoon depict the suspect, who is still on-the-run, donning an unsettling costume mask covering his entire head.
Police say Boelter wore the eerie face-concealing disguise with a police uniform as he posed as a cop and gunned down the lawmakers.
FBI investigators believe the shootings were politically motivated and are offering a $50,000 reward to for information leading to his whereabouts.
Boelter’s best friend and roommate David Carlson told local news outlet KARE11 he is an avid Donald Trump supporter and voted for the Republican candidate.
Terrifying new images show the suspect behind Saturday’s ‘politically motivated assassinations’ wearing a creepy Halloween-style mask while launching his killing spree
Police say Boelter wore the eerie face-concealing disguise with a police uniform as he posed as a cop and gunned down the lawmakers
They believe Boelter is attempting ‘to potentially flee’ the Twin Cities – Minneapolis and St. Paul, The Washington Post reported.
Minnesota authorities admitted they let the gunman slip away, despite engaging him in a firefight immediately after the murders at around 4am local time Saturday.
The first shooting occurred just after 2am at Hoffman’s home in Champlin, about 20 miles from Minneapolis. Hoffman and his wife were shot multiple times and are reportedly stable following surgery.
The second attack took place at around 4am at Hortman’s Brooklyn Park residence, about eight miles south.
Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said the suspect’s vehicle – which was made to look like a cop car – contained a ‘manifesto’, a list of 70 targets including both lawmakers, and signs for an anti-Trump ‘NO KINGS’ rally set to be held on Saturday.
A Minnesota official who has seen the suspect’s ‘hit list’ told CNN that it specifically mentioned ‘prominent pro-choice individuals in Minnesota, including many Democratic lawmakers who have been outspoken about pro-choice policy positions.’
It was later revealed that the alarming list featured doctors, healthcare centers and Planned Parenthoods, The New York Times reported.
Several former and current politicians, as well as Minnesota community and business leaders, were also listed. Some targets were reportedly out of state.
Daniel Carlson (pictured) tearfully read aloud text messages from the accused assassin
The FBI and other law enforcement agencies have been frantically searching for Boelter, who is believed to be trying to flee the Twin Cities area
Authorities are in the process of going through that list and urgently alerting those who were named.
The night before the deadly shots were fired, Boelter texted his roommates he was ‘going to be gone for a while.’
Carlson, who shared a North Minneapolis home with Boelter, tearfully read aloud text messages from the accused assassin.
‘David and Ron, I love you guys,’ the eerie note began. ‘I made some choices, and you guys don’t know anything about this, but I’m going to be gone for a while.’
He also said he ‘may be dead shortly’ and did not wish to involve Carlson or his other roommate Ron Ramsey.
‘I don’t know why he did what he did,’ Carlson told KARE 11.
‘It’s just it’s not Vance. … He had lots of friends, trust me, and I wish I could have been there to stop him.’
The alleged shooter has armed security experience in the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe, and North America through the Praetorian Guard Security Services, his biography on the site said.
FBI investigators believe the shootings were politically motivated and are offering a $50,000 reward to for information leading to his whereabouts
Salt Lake County, Utah Mayor Jenny Wilson also expressed her heartbreak over the four victims of the shootings
‘He brings a great security aspect forged by both many on the ground experiences combined with training by both private security firms and by people in the US Military,’ it read.
‘Vance has focused all this experience to make sure Praetorian Guard Security Services covers the needs you have to keep your family and property safe.’
Boelter has also lived a life of public service before today’s tragedies, and he even served on the Governor’s Workforce Development Board, which works closely with Walz to give advice on the state’s workforce.
He served on the board from June 2016 to June 2018 as a private sector representative and from December 2019 to January 2023 as a board member.
Boelter served on the board alongside one of his victims, Hoffman.
During a Saturday press conference, Walz spoke out about the alleged actions of his former appointee.
‘Today Minnesota lost a great leader,’ he said while discussing Hortman. ‘Violence has no place in our political system — and it must end.’
Members of Minnesota communities and beyond have been reeling as the frantic manhunt for shooting suspect Vance Boelter rages on.
According to the Hoffmans’ nephew, Mat Ollig, the couple will be bound to the hospital ‘for a while,’ The New York Times reported (pictured: bullet holes in the Hoffmans’ front door)
Hortman and her husband (pictured) were tragically killed by the assailant’s gunfire
‘What happened today is simply incomprehensible and unimaginable, certainly in the context of Minnesota,’ Norm Coleman, a former senator from Minnesota and former mayor of St. Paul, said, according to The New York Times.
Senator Tina Smith of Minnesota also spoke out about the death of State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, saying she was ‘shattered’ by the news.
She and Senator Amy Klobuchar had just seen the victims at a dinner party on Friday night.
Beyond Minnesota, Senator Chris Coons of Delaware has also shared a statement denouncing political violence in America.
Salt Lake County, Utah Mayor Jenny Wilson expressed her heartbreak over the four victims of the shootings.
‘My heart goes out to the family and friends of House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, who were shot and killed in their home,’she wrote on X.
‘My heart also goes out to State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. They, too, were shot while at home. I’m wishing them a quick and full recovery.’
According to the Hoffmans’ nephew, Mat Ollig, the couple will be bound to the hospital ‘for a while,’ The New York Times reported.
‘It’s just shocking that this would happen,’ he reflected.
In a text message to the outlet on Saturday night, Ollig revealed Yvette ‘is awake and alert,’ while his family is ‘waiting to hear more about John.’
