Naked man found inside the Minnesota Senate chamber after hours is arrested, investigation underway

By Caroline Cummings, Caroline Cummings

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    ST. PAUL, Minnesota (WBBM) — Capitol security found a man inside the Minnesota Senate chamber late Friday night, even though the building was closed to the public, the Minnesota State Patrol said Saturday. He returned to the Capitol complex two other times before being arrested.

Around 11:30 p.m. Friday, Capitol security “was alerted through an alarm system that a man was in the Capitol after hours,” and when found, he “was naked and nonviolent and it was quickly determined that he needed a mental health evaluation,” Col. Christina Bogojevic, chief of the state patrol, said in a statement.

The man was then taken to Regions Hospital for that evaluation and the hospital released him, Bogojevic said. Around 7:30 a.m. Saturday, he was again seen on the Capitol grounds but not in the Capitol itself.

Then he was taken into custody later Saturday after he showed up to the Capitol complex a third time and is being held in Ramsey County jail. WCCO News typically does not name suspects until they are formally charged.

“There are no indications at this time that the man broke into the Capitol. We are in the process of reviewing any video to determine his exact whereabouts while he was inside the building,” Bogojevic said.

It comes a month after Rep. Melissa Hortman, the House DFL leader, and her husband Mark were shot and killed in an attack at their homes, which authorities say was a political assassination by a masked gunman impersonating a police officer.

DFL Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were also shot and wounded and investigators say the accused assassin had a hitlist with other Democratic officials’ names on it.

It’s unclear how the man got into the Capitol building and inside the Senate chamber after hours. The sergeant at arms in the Minnesota Senate notified senators and staff about the incident Saturday morning, according to an email obtained by WCCO News.

The individual “made statements indicating he was the governor, among other remarks,” Sven Lindquist, chief sergeant at arms for the chamber, wrote.

The state patrol, in a news release Saturday, said the man is being held in jail awaiting extradition in connection with an arrest warrant from Wisconsin.

“We are examining all aspects of the incident to address any security concerns,” Lindquist told senators and chamber staff in the email. “I want to reiterate that the safety and security of all individuals within the Capitol remain the top priority for Capitol Security and the Sergeants at Arms for both the House and Senate.”

The state patrol, which oversees Capitol security, echoed that statement and said that the agency is “committed to understanding how it occurred.”

The June 14 lawmaker attacks are putting a spotlight on concerns about safety for elected officials and security at the Capitol, where there are no metal detectors or other screening before the public can enter. The Capitol building closes at night.

Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson, R-East Grand Forks, in a statement said he was “disappointed” in the security breach.

“We are living in a heightened threat environment. I expect the State Patrol and Capitol Security teams will thoroughly review what happened and give Capitol officials and staff, and the public, their assurances that this will not happen again,” Johnson said.

House Speaker Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, was critical that it took three encounters with the suspect before he was taken into custody.

“While I’m grateful the offender is in custody, it should not take three incidents in 24 hours to finally be booked. In this environment of heightened security, we need to be even more vigilant, not less,” Demuth said in a statement after his arrest.

DFL leaders have not yet commented on the incident.

Former GOP majority leader Paul Gazelka said he would like to see security checkpoints at the Capitol.

“Virtually every courthouse has that, so that would be, to me, the number one thing that you should do,” said Gazelka.

The number of attacks, mostly verbally, against lawmakers in Minnesota and nationwide has risen dramatically in the past 10 years, he said.

In 2024, United States Capitol Police said there were 9,474 concerning statements or direct threats against members of Congress. That number more than doubled over the previous seven years.

It’s about striking that balance between securing the Capitol and keeping it accessible for people to express their First Amendment rights, Gazelka said.

“We want people there, but at the same time, we have to make sure that we are protecting the people that are working there,” said Gazelka. “If you haven’t had some common sense guidelines down, who’s the next person that could be there to hurt somebody?”

In wake of the lawmaker shootings, the Minnesota House and Senate will pay for home security upgrades for their members with state funds through their existing budgets. Before, lawmakers could only draw from campaign funds for such measures or out of their own pockets.

Earlier this month, the top law enforcement official in Ramsey County urged lawmakers to consider additional security measures at the Capitol amid what he called “a troubling increase in the use of political violence, threats and intimidation.”

In a letter addressed to Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, Sheriff Bob Fletcher said, “recent heartbreaking events highlight the urgent need to reexamine security measures within the Capitol Complex.”

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