# Breaking news: Minnesota assassin targeting Democrats 2025-06-14

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Tags:** breaking-news\
**Created:** [June 14, 2025, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626 "2025-06-14T14:07:38Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/61 "2025-06-15T16:10:58Z")

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I’ll suggest that although the legislature’s various offices and websites can easily avoid publishing things like home addresses or cellphone numbers, they also can’t stop the many, many commercial data aggregation companies from doing the same thing to legislators as they do to you or me.

For a subscription to one of those “find out everything about [insert name here]” companies, you can learn a lot about yourself, your neighbors, or any name you can to put into their search box. it is substantially impossible for somebody to hide from those sorts of data aggregators unless they’ve always done 100% of their online stuff via an assumed name or an intermediary.

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**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/62 "2025-06-15T16:29:11Z")

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> [@Ann\_Hedonia](#):
>
> What’s kind of frightening is that this guy didn’t seem to be delusional or a Qanon nutter, he seemed to be a respected community member.

It sounds like the sort of “bucket list” thing a person with a terminal illness might make up their minds to do. A _competent_ person who’s decided that they have nothing to lose is frightening indeed.

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**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/63 "2025-06-15T16:29:44Z")

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> [@Mops](#):
>
> A minor factual question: How much work would it be for a member of the public to get the home addresses of Minnesota Respresentatives? (I assume this information is neither published nor secret.)

I don’t know how things work in Minnesota, but in my state you can get that information through an online, publicly accessible database run by the state elections board.

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**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/64 "2025-06-15T16:34:07Z")

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> [@joebuck20](#):
>
> I don’t know how things work in Minnesota, but in my state you can access that information through an online, publicly accessible database run by the state elections board.

Those prompting these nutbags to act are intent on instilling fear in the populace that will lead to secrecy and distrust of the government in general.

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**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/65 "2025-06-15T19:50:24Z")

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His abandoned vehicle has been found in Faxon Township which is located in Sibley County, Minnesota, approximately 50 miles southwest of the Twin Cities:

> **2:01 p.m. -** Mike Liebhard, 59, said he left his home on 301st Avenue Sunday morning in Faxon Township and saw a black, “older little car, like a Buick” on the side of the road near the intersection with Highway 25. The area was already “full of cops,” he said. He welcomed police to search his house, before they let him return…
> 
> Officers were seen searching around the car, and exiting from the woods to the west around 1:40 p.m. It appeared to be a black sedan, with its doors opened as officers looked around. Media members were not allowed to get closer than a little less than a mile from the vehicle. Parked to the south on the highway were at least a half dozen police squad cars. There was a blue tarp lying on the gravel just behind the car next to the trunk.
> 
> Emergency alerts are being sent to nearby residents cautioning them to keep their doors locked and vehicles secured.

> **[Live: Authorities find assassination suspect’s vehicle as manhunt continues](https://www.startribune.com/melissa-hortman-shooting-vance-boelter-suspect/601373342)**
>
> Officials asked the public for help finding suspect Vance Boelter.

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**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/66 "2025-06-15T19:53:26Z")

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I can imagine they were afraid of a booby trap/bomb in the car. Clearly his wife was trying to meet him. Maybe they can get good information off of her phone/burner.

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**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/67 "2025-06-15T20:09:24Z")

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> [@hajario](#):
>
> Clearly his wife was trying to meet him.

It’s a bit out of the way: she was stopped 60 miles north of the Twin cites while his car was found 50 southwest of the Twin Cities–so 110 miles apart.

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/68 "2025-06-15T20:14:26Z")

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Did they take buses?

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**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/69 "2025-06-15T22:27:08Z")

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Sounds more like they were intending to meet up [someplace] after a couple days’ separate travel.

If so, the cops may be able to sweat that rendezvous plan out of the wife.

Back in the day it’d be appropriate to assume he would not know she’d been picked up. So the cops could set an ambush there w a good liklihood of success. Nowadays he probably knew within minutes of all of us knowing. So whatever their plans were, his are now different.

Then again, it’s still valuable to keep your opposition reacting, rather than executing their plan. Ad lib → poor workmanship.

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**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/70 "2025-06-15T22:43:53Z")

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I’m uncertain about one detail. The police found him in the second house with a fake police car flashing its lights out front. There was an exchange of bullets with the police. Then he fled. How did he flee? Did he take that fake police car or what?

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**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/71 "2025-06-15T22:46:00Z")

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IIRC he retreated into the house and then ran out the back door.

There were not enough police to surround the house so no one to guard the backdoor.

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**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2025, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/72 "2025-06-15T23:43:13Z")

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Then he was into the woods and slipped the cordon before it could be set up.

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**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/73 "2025-06-16T00:04:30Z")

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> [@dtilque](#):
>
> I’m uncertain about one detail. The police found him in the second house with a fake police car flashing its lights out front. There was an exchange of bullets with the police. Then he fled. How did he flee? Did he take that fake police car or what?

I presume he fled on foot. All I know is he had two cars, both Ford Explorers fitted out to look like unmarked police cars, and presumably somehow made it to the second one. That’s the one that was just found today.

The fact that police have his name and clear photos make the possibility of capture soon more likely, but who knows!

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**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/74 "2025-06-16T00:26:20Z")

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> [@LSLGuy](#):
>
> Sounds more like they were intending to meet up [someplace] after a couple days’ separate travel.

Not really. If many of us were in the situation where a spouse had murdered a major public figured, we would leave for parts unknown simply to avoid being harrassed by the media, demonstrators, etc.

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**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/75 "2025-06-16T01:19:20Z")

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My working assumption is the wife was in on the plan from the git go. They’re fleeing together.

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**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/76 "2025-06-16T01:24:30Z")

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I agree. That’s why she had the passports.

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**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/77 "2025-06-16T01:34:58Z")

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> [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#):
>
> I am genuinely curious how they know he is a fake officer.

A real cop wouldn’t shoot at other real cops. If you’re real, you can show the other real cops your ID & a quick phone call can verify you are who you say you are. Happened to a friend of mine; thru some miscommunication, local PD weren’t informed that they would be doing warrant service. He got pulled out w/ his hands up. He calmly stated he had a badge {here} & warrant paperwork {there}; the cops relaxed a little bit while they were verifying everything, then apologies & handshakes all around when it was independently confirmed all was legit.

> [@Whack-a-Mole](#):
>
> My only hope against copycats is (it seems) this guy spent a lot of money and effort to pull this off. Mainly buying the appropriate vehicle and then adding modifications to make it seem a police car.

He owned a security company. He may have had his company’s vehicles look like that already.

> [@Chronos](#):
>
> Which implies that that officer, at least, knew at least something about where the legislators lived, and had access to the exact addresses.

There’s a _lot_ of information in the CAD (Computer-Aided Dispatch) & there are databases of [PEP](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politically_exposed_person)s

> [@joebuck20](#):
>
> I don’t know how things work in Minnesota, but in my state you can get that information through an online, publicly accessible database run by the state elections board.

I’ve seen cases where someone challenges the residency of candidate _x_ & try to get them thrown off the ballot because they they _can’t_ be elected because they don’t live in the district. I don’t know how they got that info but I assume it’s on the paperwork that a candidate files.

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**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/78 "2025-06-16T01:44:24Z")

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> [@LSLGuy](#):
>
> My working assumption is the wife was in on the plan from the git go. They’re fleeing together.

That’s disturbing because it tends to add more support to what we already knew – that this probably isn’t a case of a nutbar with something neurologically wrong with his brain, but yet another symptom of a systemic sociopolitical problem in America.

Possibly not mentioned earlier, but the guy was a devoted Evangelical Christian with a fierce opposition to LGBTQ rights. That and a bunch of other stuff seems to put him squarely in the RWNJ camp. Apparently, like many of these folks, he didn’t quite grasp the concept of “Christianity”.

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**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/79 "2025-06-16T02:44:41Z")

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Looks like they captured him alive. Pretty near to his home town. Actually on his own farm out in a corn field.

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**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2025, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-minnesota-assassin-targeting-democrats-2025-06-14/1019626/80 "2025-06-16T02:59:24Z")

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> [@Hampshire](#):
>
> Looks like they captured him alive.

Seeing the same (CNN). Good. I want this man to be put on trial so that his political motivations (and orientation) can be exposed to the world.

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