Post by Scumhunter on Aug 27, 2014 8:50:31 GMT -5
RAMSEY COUNTY, Minn. -- Police in Ramsey County, Minn., have released a new wanted poster in the hunt for the suspected killer of a Boston Scientific executive, reports CBS Minnesota.
Kelly Phillips, 48, worked as vice president and general counsel for the medical device company in its Arden Hills, Minn. office. Police believe he was shot and killed Aug. 11 at a gas station several blocks away from his work by his one-time business and romantic partner, Lyle "Ty" Hoffman.
Police say Phillips was shot in the head and back as he was running from the gunman.
Hoffman remains at large, but prosecutors have charged him with second-degree murder and issued a national warrant for his arrest. The wanted poster, released by the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office, describes Hoffman as armed and dangerous and offers a $10,000 reward for information that leads to his arrest and conviction.
A witness, Josh Polos, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he had stopped to get gas the morning of Aug. 11 when a BMW pulled in behind him and he heard what he thought was someone yelling at him. Polos said he got out to signal that he was filling up his tank, and the car pulled past his sport utility vehicle and into a parking spot.
Polos said two men got out of the car, and the driver shot the other man three times. The driver fired first as the two were alongside the car, then as the passenger began running and finally at the victim's head as he pleaded for his life, Polos said.
Then the shooter got back into the car, backed up, sped forward and ran over the victim, he said. The gun used in the shooting has not been recovered, according to the wanted poster.
"The guy went right over the top of him and shot him in the back of the head, literally in broad daylight," another witness, Frank Antencio, told CBS Minnesota. "Right in the back of the head. He got in the car and it looked like he was struggling to get the car in gear or whatever, backed up, then ran over the guy's legs as he was leaving and took off on 96."
Soon after, police identified the suspect as Hoffman, a 44-year-old commercial developer. Friends told CBS Minnesota that Hoffman was Phillips' ex-boyfriend.
Hoffman and Phillips opened a gay bar in Minneapolis five years ago called the Lush Food Bar.
Kathy Simon, Phillips' ex-wife, told the Star-Tribune that Hoffman and Phillips broke up their romantic relationship about three years ago, but maintained a business partnership surrounding the eatery.
Phillips once told her that "Ty was sort of violent and that he [Phillips] was ending the relationship," reports the paper.
Since the breakup, she told the paper, "there were money [conflicts], and things were getting a little crazy, it seemed."
The business partnership continued until several months ago. Phillips evicted Hoffman from a northeast Minneapolis residence that he owned in April, around the time the business relationship dissolved, reports the paper.
Admin Note: Ramsey County authorities say Hoffman is likely relying on social media to find shelter while on the run from authorities. The Ramsey County Sheriff's Office said on a "wanted" poster that Hoffman could be evading capture by using Craigslist and gay dating applications such as Grindr and Scruff.
Hoffman has traveled extensively within the Unites States, Canada, and Mexico, and has also mentioned visiting Belize. He enjoys playing blackjack and has visited Las Vegas and Minnesota casinos extensively. He is known to gravitate toward gay communities in the places he visits.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS. There is now a $25,000 reward for information leading to Hoffman's capture.
www.cbsnews.com/news/manhunt-continues-for-ex-boyfriend-of-slain-minnesota-exec/
kstp.com/news/stories/s3542416.shtml
www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/26373022/find-ty-hoffman-25000-reward-for-fugitive-murder-suspect
