The suspect behind the double attack on Minnesota Democratic legislators was finally captured on Sunday evening after almost two days of intensive research throughout the state. The arrest signs the conclusion of a most tense weekend in the United States, where elected officials now fear the worst for their security.
Vance Boelter was arrested in Green Isle, Minnesota, the city where he lived, some 40 hours after the assassination of Melissa Hortman, Democratic representative of the State for 20 years, and her husband Mark.
On Saturday, the police almost caught up with the suspect in front of the victims’ home in Brooklyn Park, but the individual had managed to run away after exchanging shots with the agents. Earlier, the man also tried to murder another elected official, Senator John Hoffman, and his wife, whose residence is located about fifteen kilometers further.
“It is the biggest manhunt in state history,” said Mark Bruley, Brooklyn Park police chief in the press conference following the arrest, shortly before midnight on Sunday.
More than 100 police officers and 20 SWAT teams were deployed.
“The suspect crawled to (our teams) and was placed in arrest at that time,” said Lieutenant-Colonel Jeremy Geiger of the Minnesota State patrol. Even if the man was armed, no policeman was injured.
The authorities have said that so far convinced that the man had acted alone.
Photo Kerem Yücel, Associated Press
The Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz at a press conference following the arrest of Vance Boelter, Sunday evening
During this press conference, the Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, was able to confirm that Senator Hoffman and his wife were in the process of recovery. The assailant’s unthinkable actions will have “changed the state of Minnesota,” he said.
Earlier Sunday, a second vehicle belonging to the attacker had been found in Sibley, a rural region of the state, located about an hour drive southwest of Brooklyn Park, where the shootings occurred the day before.
The residents of the sector, on the alert, had received in the morning of emergency alerts intimating them to close their doors and to protect their vehicles in the shelter. The individual was dangerous and “ready to kill”, hammered the authorities.
Photo Tim Evans, Reuters
American flag at half mast in front of the Capitol of the State of Minnesota, in Saint Paul, in memory of the deputy Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark
Meanwhile, the flags were put at half mast throughout the state, in mourning since the loss of one of its elected officials.
Anti -revooring patterns
On Saturday, the suspect’s wife was arrested by the authorities, then released, a hundred kilometers north of the place of the shooting. Other members of the suspect’s family were also interviewed by the investigators, but no arrest followed, we learned on Sunday.
Photo Tim Gruber, The New York Times
Minnesota state helicopter
A list of a dozen potential targets was searched at the suspect’s home on Saturday, a police source reported in CNN. In the first car of the suspect discovered by the authorities, a list of 70 potential targets had first been found, including the name of his victims, as well as several addresses of abortion clinics.
According to Amy Klobuchar, senator from Minnesota, these attacks are in fact a link with abortion, because the killed representative had made the protection of the right to interruption of pregnancy his high priority.
This is what the senator said on Sunday during her visit to the show Meet the press From the NBC channel, while research was still in progress.
A friend of the suspect also told New York Times that he opposed abortion. Other friends and colleagues, interviewed by Associated Press, described him as a fervent Christian with conservative values, who went to campaign rallies for President Donald Trump.
Shapeful elected officials
The double attack on Saturday caused a shock wave within the Minnesota political class, but also among elected officials nationwide.
Photo Tim Gruber, The New York Times
Swat team mobilized in Green Isle, Minnesota, on Sunday, looking for the fiery suspect
“Unfortunately, we know very well the tragedy of political violence that strikes the house,” testified Saturday on X the former president of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, whose husband was attacked at his home in 2022. “We must all remember that it is not only the act of violence, but also the reaction to this act, which can normalize it on Saturday.
Trump attacks Governor Walz
Called to comment on the events on Sunday morning, before the suspect was found, the president called into question the skills of Tim Walz, former Kamala Harris-Colistier in the last presidential election. “It’s terrible. I think he is a very bad governor, someone who is completely incompetent. But I could call him, as I could call other people, “said President Donald Trump, an ABC journalist.
Who is the suspect, vance Boelter?
Former political leader, Vance Boelter sat on the Development Council of Minnesota’s workforce, alongside Senator John Hoffman, one of his victims. The 57 -year -old man and his wife are the head of a private security company using vehicles similar to those employed by the police. The couple also seems to be at the head of a non -profit religious organization, whose archived version of the website indicates that Boelter has already preached abroad. He “sought militant Islamists in order to share the Gospel and tell them that violence was not the solution,” said it.
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- 9747
- A number of statements concerning threats against members of the congress, their families and their staff, in 2024. This is a record number of incidents for the second consecutive year.
Source: United States Capitol Police
