State investigators say police shot at Vance Boelter in response to gunfire at the Hortman home

Police officers outside of the home of state Rep. Melissa Hortman shot at suspect Vance Boelter after they heard gunfire from inside, according to a new account by investigators released on Thursday.

This disclosure came from the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA), which is leading the investigation into June 14 deaths of Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, and the wounding of state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, a few hours earlier at the Champlin home. Boelter, who is scheduled to appear in federal court on Friday, was arrested 43 hours after the shootings in a field not far from his home just outside Green Isle, southwest of the Twin Cities.

He remains in jail and is charged with six federal crimes, including stalking and murder. He’s also charged with murder and attempted murder in Hennepin County District Court.

What the latest information from the BCA does not say is whether Boelter, 57, fired at officers either before or after he killed the Hortmans. Questions remain about whether Boelter shot back out of the house at law enforcement, but Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said in an interview last week that there was an intense amount of gunfire.

“You had the officers shooting at the suspect, the suspect shoots Mark right in the entryway, he goes in the house and he starts shooting in the house,“ Bruley said. ”It’s really, really chaotic. As they called ‘shots fired,’ lots and lots of resources came. They converged on the house."

In its statement released Thursday, the BCA said:

Officer Zachary Baumtrog and another officer who was not identified “proactively responded” to the Hortman residence just after 3:30 a.m. to check on their welfare after their sergeant heard about the shooting at the the Hoffmans’ home.

The officers arrived and saw a vehicle resembling a police squad car, with emergency lights flashing, in the Hortmans’ driveway and a man, later identified as Boelter, out front and dressed as a police officer.

“Shots were fired, and Officer Baumtrog discharged his firearm in response,” the statement read.

The BCA said its personnel recovered spent casings from the scene.

A search warrant affidavit filed in Hennepin County District Court says that 11 shell casings from a 9-millimeter Luger appeared to have been fired by Baumtrog. Six were recovered from the top of a Brooklyn Park police squad car, and five were fired from behind Boelter’s vehicle.

The gun used to kill the Hortmans was also a 9-millimeter Luger, but it used different bullets than the casings found in the driveway.

Six bullet casings were found in the front yard and doorway of the Hortmans’ house, and seven were found inside the house: two in the family office and five near the stairs leading from the main floor to the second floor.

Nineteen additional “projectiles” were found inside and outside the house, though the search warrant does not clarify what weapon they were fired from. Casings from two 40-millimeter “less than lethal” rounds were also recovered outside the home.

Blood was found on a robe, an iPhone, in the driveway, on the stairs and on the walls of the staircase. Behind the house, investigators found a Beretta handgun, a replica Beretta handgun, a permit to carry badge, a holster, a facemask and a wig.

The BCA statement said Baumtrog was wearing a body camera during the encounter. BCA agents are reviewing the video as part of their investigation.

The Brooklyn Park Police Department has placed Baumtrog, who has nine years of law enforcement experience, on standard critical incident leave.

Once the BCA investigation into Baumtrog’s use of force is complete, the agency will send its findings to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office for review to determine whether the officer’s actions were legally justified.

Search warrants for Boelter’s bank records were unsealed this week in Hennepin County District Court, showing that BCA investigators learned Boelter was employed at the University of Minnesota eye bank.

The BCA contacted university police, who shared Boelter’s personnel file, including that his paychecks were being deposited into an account with New Market Bank. Boelter’s bank accounts with U.S. Bank and a Mastercard through Sam’s Club were also investigated.

In a statement, the university said that Boelter was employed as a ”temporary technician” at their eye bank from December 2024 until June 13. According to their website, the eye bank “provides donor eye tissue for transplant, research, and teaching, and promotes donation through education.”

It is unclear whether the termination of his employment resulted from his arrest or was decided beforehand. The statement continued: “The University is fully cooperating with federal and state authorities as they continue the investigation into the events surrounding the tragic shootings that claimed the lives of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and seriously injured Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. Due to the ongoing investigation, we are unable to share additional information.”

It is among several jobs Boelter appears to have worked at over the past few years. In a self-made résumé-style video posted to social media, Boelter spelled out his work in the funeral home industry and a food supply business project in Africa. He said he worked six days a week, splitting his time between Wulff Funeral Home and Metro First Call.

Tim Koch, owner of Metro First Call, said Boelter worked for his funeral services company from August 2023 to February 2025, when he “voluntarily left.” Koch declined to say more, other than expressing his condolences to the Hortman and Hoffman families.