At various times, Vance Luther Boelter has claimed to work in the food service industry. In other moments, he’s claimed he runs large firms involved with “security situations” overseas, including Africa, Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
His past is as mysterious as his whereabouts. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Boelter, now the subject of an intense manhunt as the prime suspect in the assassination of a Minnesota lawmaker, the murder of another person and the shootings of two others.
Minnesota authorites say they believe it was Boelter who impersonated law enforcement to gain access to the victims’ homes, exchanged gunfire with police and fled on foot outside Minneapolis.
David Carlson, 59, told Reuters that he has been sharing a house in Minneapolis with Boelter for a little more than a year and last saw him on Friday night. Then about 6 a.m. on Saturday, he received a text from Boelter.
“He said that he might be dead soon,” said Carlson, who called police.
Carlson, who has known Boelter since fourth grade, said Boelter worked for an eye donation center and stayed at the house because it was close to his job. Carlson said he feels betrayed by Boelter and heartbroken for the victims, adding: “His family has got to suffer through this.”
The cryptic message sent to his roommate is just one of many unanswered questions surrounding Boelter. Officials have described the attacks as a politically motivated assassination.
Boelter, who is considered armed and dangerous, is being sought by authorities following the “targeted shootings” at lawmakers’ homes in Brooklyn Park and Champlin, two neighboring suburban cities. The shootings killed state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, while wounding State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. Both lawmakers are members of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.
Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said the suspect exchanged gunfire with police and fled on foot outside of Minneapolis. Bruley added that the suspect also had an SUV that is identical to real police vehicles, as well as an official-looking vest, outfit and equipment.
Suspect says online that he worked for global companies
Boelter lived just outside of Green Isle, a Minnesota city of around 600 people that’s about an hour southwest of the Twin Cities, Mayor Shane Sheets told USA TODAY.
Green Isle is a small community, Sheets said. Boelter had no known political involvement or affiliation in the city, he said.
Online, Boelter presented himself as a security expert who had also worked for global companies.
A LinkedIn page believed to belong to him showed he attended St. Cloud State University. University spokesperson Zach Dwyer confirmed Boelter graduated in 1996.
He also appeared as a speaker for a Minnesota nonprofit serving African immigrant communities. Minnesota Africans United, a Brooklyn Park nonprofit, said in a statement that Boelter participated in an August 2022 virtual webinar about trade and investment in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Boelter’s participation as a speaker was facilitated by a third-party, the statement said. He was never hired, paid or contracted by the nonprofit, which had no contact with him since the one-time appearance.
A biography for the session described Boelter as having worked in Congo and for a security guard company.
One of many named to state board
In 2019, the office of Minnesota Democratic Governor Tim Walz named Boelter to his Governor’s Workforce Development Board. The governor’s website said the board assists in “developing, implementing, and modifying the State plan, review of statewide policies and programs, providing recommendations on actions to align and improve the workforce development system and programs,” among other matters.
The governor’s website listed Boelter as a “business and industry representative.” His appointment was effective from December 2019 to January 2023, according to a notice.
A spokesperson for Walz said the governor’s office appoints thousands of people of all parties to boards and commissions. The workforce development board has over 60 people on it.
They are unpaid, external boards created by the legislature, and Walz doesn’t interview applicants, the spokesperson said. They aren’t appointments to a position in the governor’s cabinet, the spokesperson said.
Praetorian Guard Security Services, a residential armed home security company in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, listed Boelter as director of security patrols for the company, according to its website.
Looking for work in food service industry
The company offered licensed armed security patrols, uniformed security and event security, with the latter service coming soon.
“We drive the same make and model of vehicles that many police departments use in the U.S.,” the website said. “Currently we drive Ford Explorer Utility Vehicles.”
An email and phone call to Praetorian was not immediately returned Saturday.
Officials said the suspect’s SUV appeared to look like a police vehicle when officers responded.
In the SUV, police found writings listing the names of other officials and papers saying “No Kings,” an apparent reference to ongoing protests across the United States. The state Department of Public Safety had requested people in Minnesota to stay home from all planned demonstrations on Saturday, Gov. Tim Walz said.
In a post last month, the LinkedIn account believed to belong to Boelter said he was looking for work in the food industry.
Corey Schmidt of The St. Cloud Times, part of the USA TODAY Network, contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is the man wanted in the Minnesota lawmaker assaults? What we know
