The man suspected of killing a Minnesota lawmaker and wounding another crawled to officers in surrender Sunday after they located him in the woods near his home, bringing an end to a massive, nearly two-day search that put the entire state on edge.
He is accused of posing as a police officer and fatally shooting former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, in their home early Saturday in the northern Minneapolis suburbs.
Authorities say he also shot Sen. John Hoffman, a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette. They were injured at their residence about 9 miles (about 15 kilometers) away.
More than $100,000 has been raised for the recovery of Hoffman and his wife. The fundraiser was started by the parents group at Fernville Elementary, where Yvette Hoffman is a support professional.
Angela Champagne-From of that PTO talked with Vineeta Sawkar on the WCCO Morning News Monday about the GoFundMe.
"To say that Yvette is the kind of person that we need educating our children is really an understatement," Champagne-From said. "She's so kind, and she welcomes those kids every single day with a smile on her face. And it's just such a beautiful thing to see that someone come into our school and love our babies that way."
Officials say the Senator was shot nine times, his wife, eight times. They both remain hospitalized and are recovering.
"It's one of those things that, 'oh, this will never happen to me, this will never happen to us,' and then it comes into your community, and it really shakes you to the core," Champagne-From explains. "And once everyone connected the dots that it happened to Yvette and Senator Hoffman. I mean, the PTO, it was a call for immediate action."
On Sunday evening, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar shared a statement from Yvette Hoffman expressing appreciation for the outpouring of public support.
“John is enduring many surgeries right now and is closer every hour to being out of the woods,” Yvette Hoffman said in a text that Klobuchar posted on social media. “He took 9 bullet hits. I took 8 and we are both incredibly lucky to be alive. We are gutted and devastated by the loss of Melissa and Mark.”
Yvette reportedly threw herself on her daughter, who has spina bifida, perhaps saving her life.
To donate to the GoFundMe click here.