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The man suspected of killing a Minnesota lawmaker and wounding another has been taken into custody, bringing an end to a massive, nearly two-day search that put the entire state on edge.
Vance Boelter was arrested Sunday evening. Former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were killed in their Brooklyn Park home early Saturday in the northern Minneapolis suburbs.
Sen. John Hoffman, also a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette, were injured at their Champlin home, about 9 miles (about 15 kilometers) away.
“One man’s unthinkable actions have altered the state of Minnesota," Gov. Tim Walz said at a news conference.
Boelter was arrested in a rural area in Sibley County, southwest of Minneapolis.
“Where he was ultimately taken into custody was in a field,” said Drew Evans, superintendent of Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
He said authorities believe Boelter acted alone.
A criminal complaint unsealed Sunday night says Boelter, 57, faces two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder in the deaths of the Hortmans and the wounding of Hoffman and his wife.
The Hoffmans were attacked first at their home in Champin early Saturday. After police in nearby Brooklyn Park learned of that shooting, they sent patrol officers to check on the Hortmans’ home.
Brooklyn Park police officers arrived just in time to see Boelter shoot Mark Hortman through the open door of the home, the complaint says. It says they exchanged gunfire with Boelter, who fled inside the home before escaping the scene.
The complaint indicates the shooting at the Hoffmans’ home was called in by their adult daughter.
Mark Bruley, Brooklyn Park Police Chief, said the search for the suspect involved 20 different SWAT teams.
"There’s no question that this is the largest manhunt in the state’s history,” he said.
Earlier Drew Evans, superintendent of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said authorities found a car very early Sunday they believed Boelter was using, a few miles from his home in Green Isle, in the farm country about an hour west of Minneapolis. He also said they found evidence in the car that was relevant to the investigation, but did not provide details.
Authorities named Boelter as a suspect, saying he wore a mask as he posed as a police officer, even allegedly altering a vehicle to make it look like a police car.
Evens confirmed that investigators found a cowboy hat near the vehicle and believe it belonged to Boelter.
The superintendent also said authorities interviewed Boelter’s wife and other family members in connection with Saturday’s shootings. He said they were cooperative and were not in custody.
More than 100 law enforcement officers including SWAT teams searched the area, including nearby homes, Evans said.