Manhunt continues after shootings claims life of Minnesota lawmaker

Dozens of law-enforcement vehicles converged on a residential area in Green Isle, where authorities found a car and cowboy hat believed to belong to the suspect.

State troopers, local sheriffs agencies, SWAT vehicles and ambulances were spotted in the area. NBC News encourntered a caravan of vehicles headed to the scene earlier today.

Minnesota’s House Democratic Farmer-Labor Party caucus on Saturday remembered state Rep. Melissa Hortman, a fellow member, as “an incredible leader who dedicated her life to public service” and who had a “determination to improve people’s lives.”

Hortman, who was 55, was first elected to the Minnesota State House in 2004 and served as speaker of the chamber from 2019 to 2025.

She worked closely with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who on Saturday called her a “great leader” and a friend.

“A formidable public servant and a fixture of the state Capitol, Melissa Hortman woke up every day determined to make our state a better place. She served the people of Minnesota with grace, compassion, and tirelessness,” Walz said in a statement.

In an exclusive interview with Meet the Press, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) says that increasingly violent rhetoric from politicians, including President Trump, are an “encouragement” of political violence after the shooting of two Minnesota lawmakers.

Shooting suspect Vance Boelter’s wife was found in a vehicle that was detained by authorities yesterday near a convenience store in the Onamia area, according to Mille Lacs County Sheriff Kyle Burton.

“Our role on this stop was perimeter. We did not search or question any of the occupants,” Burton said in a statement. “I was told by my staff who responded that the shooting suspects wife was in the car along with several other relatives.”

At Rep. Hortman’s house this morning, caution tape cordoned off the property. The front door, windows and a garage door had been boarded up, and some debris laid in the driveway.

At a memorial outside the Minnesota State Capitol, a growing collection of flowers and notes has been placed at the John Johnson statue near the foot of the steps.

A photo of Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, overlooks the pile of tributes.

“You were our leader through the hardest of times,” one note read. “Rest in power.”

A cellphone photo of Melissa Hortman smiling while surrounded by colleagues is among the last images taken of her. In the picture, Hortman is seen posing with a group of state legislators at a fundraiser on Friday night.

An emergency alert has been issued in Sibley County, where some of the suspect’s belongings have been found.

NBC affiliate KARE of Minneapolis reported that authorities located Vance Boelter’s vehicle and asked residents in the area to keep their doors locked and vehicles secured. It also stated that law enforcement will be asking to search homes in the area.

David Carlson said he doesn’t think anyone who knew Vance Boelter could believe he is wanted by authorities on suspicion of the attacks.

“I don’t know why he did what he did,” Carlson told NBC affiliate KARE of Minneapolis. “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.”

Boelter was a supporter of President Donald Trump, KARE reported Carlson as saying. Carlson said he wasn’t aware of his friend’s stance on local politicians, according to the station.

Carlson also shared concerning text messages that Boelter had sent him earlier in the day that had Carlson calling authorities in concern. He choked up with emotion reading the messages aloud to reporters.

“I may be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know that I love you guys both, and I wish it hadn’t gone this way,’” the messages said, according to Carlson’s reading.

“I don’t want to say anything more and implicate you in any way, because you, you guys don’t know anything about this,” it continued. “But I love you guys, and I’m sorry for all the trouble this has caused.”

The search for Vance Luther Boelter, the man accused of fatally shooting Democratic lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband and injuring state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, is entering its second day. Two people familiar with the investigation tell NBC that the shooter left behind a list “several dozen names long” that includes politicians and non-politicians.

WASHINGTON — Sen. Amy Klobuchar said that authorities believe Vance Boelter, the 57-year-old suspect in a pair of “politically motivated” shootings, is still in the Midwest, noting that “he may be” in Minnesota and that authorities have put out an alert in South Dakota.

“We believe he’s somewhere in the vicinity and that they are going to find him,” Klobuchar, D-Minn., said during an interview on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.” “But right now, everyone is on edge here because we know that this man will kill at a second.”

A Democratic Minnesota lawmaker and her husband were killed yesterday morning in what Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., said appears to be “a politically motivated assassination.”

State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed, and state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were severely injured, Walz said. Authorities have identified the shooting suspect as 57-year-old Vance Boelter of Minnesota.

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