Minnesota Representative Hortman and Husband Shot Dead; Senator and Wife Wounded; Suspect Captured After Two-Day Manhunt
In the early morning hours of June 14, 2025, Minnesota elected officials were targeted in a series of shootings in Hennepin County, Minnesota: State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette Hoffman were shot and wounded at their home in Champlin, and State Representative and Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman were then shot and killed at their home in Brooklyn Park. On June 16, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Vance Boelter, 57, of Green Isle, had been charged by federal complaint with stalking and murdering the Hortmans and with stalking and shooting the Hoffmans, and that he would make his initial appearance that day in U.S. District Court in Saint Paul.
According to court documents cited by the Department of Justice, Boelter equipped himself with firearms and body armor, disguised himself as a law enforcement officer, and drove to the Hoffman home, where he knocked repeatedly claiming to be a police officer. After the Hoffmans opened the door and realized he was wearing a facemask, they tried to close the door, but Boelter repeatedly shot both of them. He then traveled to the homes of two other Minnesota elected officials without making contact with them or their families. Next he drove to the Hortman home, where local officers conducting a safety check saw his black Ford Explorer SUV, designed to look like a law enforcement vehicle with its police-style lights flashing, and saw him fire into the home, repeatedly striking Mark Hortman, then rush inside and repeatedly strike Representative Hortman. Both Hortmans died from their wounds, and Boelter fled on foot, abandoning the SUV.
Law enforcement searching the SUV recovered five firearms, including semi-automatic, assault-style rifles, a large quantity of ammunition, and several notebooks filled with handwritten notations listing the names of dozens of Minnesota state and federal elected officials, often with their home addresses. A two-day manhunt followed, described by the FBI as the largest manhunt in Minnesota's history. At approximately 9:15 p.m. on June 15, law enforcement located Boelter in a field in Green Isle, about one mile from his family residence, and took him into custody.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi said the Department of Justice will prosecute the suspect to the fullest extent of the law. Acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson called the attacks targeted political assassinations and an attack on Minnesota and on democracy. FBI Director Kash Patel said the defendant allegedly had a list of possible targets and went to the homes of public officials to conduct violent attacks. The FBI, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the ATF, and several local police departments are investigating. Prosecutors noted that a complaint is merely an allegation and that the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Related: Minnesota Designates Highway 610 as the Hortman Memorial Highway Honoring Melissa and Mark Hortman
(Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于明尼苏达州拉姆西县圣保罗市的明尼苏达州议会大厦，霍特曼曾在此担任州众议员并出任众议长。Myotus 摄，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Minnesota State Capitol in Saint Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota, where Hortman served as a state representative and Speaker of the House. Photo by Myotus, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- 2025-06-14Minnesota Representative Hortman and Husband Shot Dead; Senator and Wife Wounded; Suspect Captured After Two-Day ManhuntThis story
- 2026-11-07Minnesota Designates Highway 610 as the Hortman Memorial Highway Honoring Melissa and Mark Hortman
