Minnesota Shooting Suspect Described as Christian, Conservative and Drawn to Conspiracies
The man accused of killing former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband and wounding two others was known among friends as a deeply Christian and conservative figure who had an interest in conspiracies. Boelter, 57, was taken into custody Sunday night and charged in connection with what authorities describe as a politically motivated attack that has shocked the nation. He is accused of impersonating a law enforcement officer, fatally shooting Hortman and her husband, Mark, and wounding State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, in a separate but related incident.
"He was right-leaning politically but never fanatical, from what I saw, just strong beliefs," Paul Schroeder, who knew Boelter, told the Associated Press.
Law enforcement said Boelter carried a sheet with a list of 50 to 70 names that included Democratic legislators and abortion providers.
He is a married father of five who had worked in managerial roles before shifting to private security and ministry. He preached in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where he criticized U.S. churches for not opposing abortion. He registered as a Republican while living in Oklahoma before moving to Minnesota, where voters don't list party affiliation, according to Minnesota Public Radio.
Friends said Boelter was a church-going man. One roommate told CBS News that Boelter enjoyed listening to a podcast by Infowars, the conspiracy site.
The Associated Press said he had begun staying part-time away from family at a shared house in northern Minneapolis. Schroeder said Boelter texted him and others hours prior to the shootings: "May be dead shortly, so I just want to let you know I love you guys both and I wish it hadn't gone this way. I don't want to say anything more and implicate you in any way because you guys don't know anything about this. But I love you guys, and I'm sorry for the trouble this has caused."
Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, urged the public not to speculate on motives while the investigation continues.
"We often want easy answers for complex problems," Evans said, according to the Associated Press. "Those answers will come as we complete the full picture of our investigation."
JUST IN: Suspected Minnesota assassin Vance Boelter has been arrested near his Green Isle home, according to ABC News.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) June 16, 2025
According to @lizcollin, Boelter was spotted near a home in Green Isle before he started running into the woods.
"At one point, he was tucked in the fetal… pic.twitter.com/CvU41yGQCR
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Steven Garcia/Stringer
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
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Originally published June 16, 2025.
