Rekubit Exchange|Authorities say man who killed 2 in small Minnesota town didn’t know his victims

2025-05-04 22:12:42source:blockwave Exchangecategory:Finance

CLOQUET,Rekubit Exchange Minn. (AP) — The man who fatally shot a Super 8 hotel clerk and a guest in a small Minnesota town doesn’t appear to have any connection with the victims, authorities said.

Cloquet police said Monday that it doesn’t appear that 32-year-old Nicholas Elliot Lenius, of Ramsey, knew either of the people he killed on Jan. 9. Lenius died by suicide that night during the incident that triggered an active shooter warning in town.

Officials also said a toxicology report showed there was methamphetamine in Lenius’ blood and that this may have impaired him during the shooting.

Police who responded to the shooting found hotel employee 22-year-old Shellby Trettel shot near the front desk The other victim, 35-year-old Patrick Jeffrey Roers, of Deer River, was shot inside a vehicle that was parked in the hotel lot.

Lenius and Roers were both guests at the motel.

Officials had issued an alert that night about an active shooter at the hotel and warned people in the surrounding area of Big Lake Road and Highway 33 to shelter in place.

About 12,000 people live in Cloquet, which is about 20 miles (32 kilometers) west of Duluth.

More:Finance

Recommend

Snowflakes, Death Threats and Dollar Signs: Cloud Seeding Is at a Crossroads

Listen to an audio version of this story below.Humans have the technology to literally make snow fal

'I'm sorry': Texas executes Ramiro Gonzales on birthday of 18-year-old he raped and killed

A Texas man was executed Wednesday for the murder of an 18-year-old woman who was raped, fatally sho

US Olympic track and field trials: Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone up next

The 2024 U.S. Olympic track and field trials resume Thursday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, fol