James Chater and Mike Wendling
BBC News, Sydney and Minneapolis
Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office/Reuters
Police said suspect Vance Luther Boelter was armed at the time of his arrest
A man has been arrested on suspicion of killing a Democratic state lawmaker and her husband, after a two-day manhunt in the US state of Minnesota.
The chase came to an end in a wooded rural area west of Minneapolis, where he surrendered peacefully and ended up crawling towards officers, police said.
Vance Luther Boelter, 57, is charged with killing Melissa Hortman, a Minnesota Democrat, and her husband Mark. State Governor Tim Walz called it a “politically motivated assassination”.
He is also alleged to have shot and wounded Democratic State Senator John Hoffman, and his wife Yvette, who are both now awake in hospital.
Watch: Minnesota governor Tim Walz confirms Vance Luther Boelter’s arrest
Mrs Hoffman said on Sunday that both felt “incredibly lucky to be alive”, as they had been hit by 17 bullets between them.
She and her husband had been “gutted and devastated” by the Hortmans’ deaths, Mrs Hoffman added in her statement. “We have no words,” she wrote. “There is never a place for this kind of political hate.”
Follow live updates of investigationWife of Minnesota politician shielded daughterMr Boelter faces two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree attempted murder. He is due to appear in court in Minneapolis at 13: 30 local time (14: 30 EDT; 18: 30 GMT) on Monday.
The suspect is a former political appointee and was once a member of the same state workforce development board as John Hoffman. However it is unclear if they actually knew each other.
Police have not suggested what the alleged killer’s motive might have been, but US senator Amy Klobuchar has joined Governor Walz in suggesting the attacks were politically motivated.
Officials said on Sunday that Vance Luther Boe
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