Accused assassin Vance Boelter ordered held for trial, tells judge he looks forward to the facts coming out

A federal judge in Minnesota on Thursday ordered accused political assassin Vance Luther Boelter held until his trial on charges he gunned down a former state House speaker and her husband, and shot a state senator and his wife on June 14.

Boelter, 57, of Green Isle, Minn., told U.S. Magistrate Judge Douglas Micko that he is “looking forward to the truth and facts of the 14th to come before you,” adding, “I think Minnesotans want to know what’s going on.”

Judge Micko found probable cause to hold Boelter for trial. There is no bail in federal criminal court. A Hennepin County judge set Boelter’s bail at $5 million on state murder and attempted murder charges.

Acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said Boelter will be indicted by a grand jury by July 15 and then face an arraignment hearing on the charges handed down by the panel. The grand jury could add criminal counts to the six felonies listed in the June 16 criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court.

A law enforcement honor guard leads the caskets of Melissa and Mark Hortman out of the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis after their June 28 funeral Mass.Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

Boelter is charged with first shooting state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, at the front door of their home in Champlin, Minn., just after 2 a.m. June 14.

Boelter was dressed as a police officer, wearing a disguise and driving a Ford SUV painted like a police vehicle. After the Hoffmans opened the door to Boelter, they quickly realized he was not a real police officer and tried to force him out of the house, according to an FBI affidavit filed in federal court June 16. The Hoffmans said they were shot a total of 17 times. They survived after emergency surgery and are recovering.

‘Minnesotans want to know what’s going on.’

Boelter had murder on his mind when visiting two other homes owned by Minnesota state legislators, Thompson has said. State Rep. Rep. Kristin Bahner (DFL-Maple Grove) was not home when Boelter pounded on the front door of her home, the FBI said. He next planned to go to the home of state Sen. Ann Rest (DFL-New Hope), but was scared away after a New Hope police officer spotted his SUV parked a block away.

He next went to the home of Speaker of the House Emerita Melissa Hortman (DFL-Brooklyn Park), parking his SUV in the driveway with its emergency lights engaged.

Before he could attempt to enter the home, he was confronted by two Brooklyn Park Police Department officers, the FBI said. He opened fire on them, and nine-year veteran Officer Zachary Baumtrog returned fire, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

Baumtrog was placed on critical-incident leave, which is standard in officer-involved shootings.

Boelter fired his 9mm Glock pistol into the front door as he forced his way inside the Hortman home. He then assassinated Hortman, her husband, Mark Hortman, and their golden retriever, Gilbert, the FBI said. He escaped out the rear of the home, setting off a more than 40-hour manhunt that ended with his arrest in a field near Green Isle at 9:15 p.m. June 15.

After the hearing, Thompson told reporters the investigation is ongoing “to determine exactly what happened and if anyone else was involved.”

Wearing a yellow jail uniform Thursday, Boelter repeated some of his complaints about conditions at the Sherburne County Jail in Elk River, where he is being held. He asked if the lights in his cell could be turned off at night.

At a hearing June 27, Boelter complained about a laundry list of things, drawing a strong rebuke from Sherburne County Sheriff Joel Brott. “He is not in a hotel," Brott said. "He’s in jail.”

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