FBI Offers $50,000 Reward
Suspect Believed to Remain in the Twin Cities
Authorities Find Manifesto and Target List in Abandoned Vehicle
The identity of the man who shot and killed a state legislator couple in Minnesota and then fled has been revealed.
According to reports from The New York Times (NYT), Reuters, and other foreign media outlets on June 14 (local time), the suspect who broke into the home of State Representative Melissa Hortman in Brooklyn Park, a suburb of Minneapolis, in the early morning and shot and killed Representative Hortman and her spouse before fleeing has been identified as Vance L. Boelter, age 57.
Boelter also broke into the home of State Senator John Hoffman and his spouse in the nearby city of Champlin, opened fire, and then fled the scene. All of the Minnesota state legislators who were killed or seriously injured by Boelter's gunfire are members of the Democratic Party.
The New York Times, citing an acquaintance of Boelter, reported that the suspect is a Christian who has long opposed abortion and voted for President Donald Trump in the U.S. presidential election.
Authorities believe Boelter is still within Minnesota's "Twin Cities" area (Minneapolis and St. Paul) and are actively pursuing him. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to his capture. In the vehicle Boelter abandoned, authorities found a manifesto believed to explain his motives, as well as a list of potential targets.
This list, which contains 70 names or addresses, reportedly includes Democratic politicians such as Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who was the Democratic vice presidential candidate in last year's election, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Ilhan Omar, the Somali-American congresswoman currently representing Minnesota in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The list is also said to include doctors who provide abortion services, local businesspeople, Planned Parenthood offices, and health clinics. This has led to cautious speculation that the suspect may have selected his targets based on his personal religious and political beliefs, such as opposition to abortion and support for the Trump administration.
Governor Walz stated, "This was an act of political violence with predetermined targets," and added, "Peaceful dialogue is the foundation of our democracy."
Former President Joe Biden also expressed his condolences in a statement, saying, "We must not provide safe haven for hate and extremism, and all of us must unite against political violence."
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