St. Paul man charged with threatening Mayor Kaohly Her in wake of political assassinations

Mara H. Gottfried, Pioneer Press on Jun 17, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

Videos that surfaced online showed St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her and Melissa Hortman with bullet holes in their foreheads, according to charges announced Wednesday.

They were posted on the same day that Hortman, former speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives, was assassinated, along with her husband at their Brooklyn Park home.

Prosecutors charged a 49-year-old St. Paul man with threats of violence and harassment against Her.

Her, then a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, reported the videos that were posted to YouTube.

A screenshot from one of the videos showed Her’s face, along with Hortman’s face and the face of Sen. John Hoffman, who was also shot at his home on June 14, 2025.

Through investigation, law enforcement identified the person who posted the videos as Pao Her Lee, according to a criminal complaint.

Investigators spoke with Lee in July and he said he had no knowledge of the videos. Law enforcement spoke with Lee again in December. He said “he had no intention of harming (Her) and apologized for the posts making (Her) feel threatened,” the complaint said.

He said “he was not serious and meant nothing by posting the videos,” the complaint continued. “Instead, he had posted them to be funny because he works as a blogger and the other politicians had recently been killed or shot.”

An attorney for Lee wasn’t listed in the court file as of Wednesday afternoon.

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office is handling the matter since Her is an elected official in Ramsey County.

“That these threats were made in the immediate aftermath of one of the most traumatizing instances of political violence in American history — and even referenced that violence — is particularly appalling,” County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement.

Video showed animosity toward Her

Records showed the two videos were posted on June 14, 2025, the same day Melissa and Mark Hortman were killed and John and Yvette Hoffman were shot and wounded.

The complaint described a video as follows:

It started by asking whether Her was dreaming of riding a white horse and stated Melissa Hortman was killed that morning.

“Will (Her) get to ride a white horse like Melissa Hortman?” the video continued.

The narrator claimed Her “is a mean person and has locked up many Hmong people” and said, “If we knocked on her door, will she be terrified?”

The video also said, “Let’s talk about (Her), Melissa, and (Hoffman) on why people would want to kill them.” The narrator mentioned George Floyd “and how these three people have allowed the Black community to burn Lake Street and the police precinct.”

The narrator also talked about a time “when the older Asian community was getting assaulted for no reason because the Democratic party did not stand up for them.”

The video’s narrator also discussed abortion laws “and how the Democrats are at fault” and blamed Her “for the abortion laws being her legacy and idea.”

“The narrator discusses the Second Amendment right to bear arms against the government,” the complaint said. “He stated that is what we saw today with the killing of Melissa Hortman and the shooting of the senator.”

She didn’t know the suspect

In a follow-up statement to law enforcement, Her said she learned about two videos circulating online “that called on the Hmong community to kill her,” according to the complaint.

She said she didn’t know the suspect and, after watching the videos, “felt concerned for herself and terrified for her family,” the complaint said. She “observed that she had underestimated others’ willingness to harm legislators.”

“Every small thing that appeared out of place made (Her) fearful, including the gate of her residence being open, a package being delivered, or a car driving by or parking outside her residence,” the complaint concluded.

A spokesperson for Mayor Her said Wednesday they would not be commenting on the case.

The matter was brought to prosecutors in late 2025 and developed through further investigation, which led to charges filed Tuesday, according to the Hennepin County attorney’s office.

Lee is charged with one count of felony threats of violence, one count of gross misdemeanor harassment that placed Her in reasonable fear of substantial bodily harm, and one count of gross misdemeanor harassment that caused or would reasonably expect to cause substantial emotional distress to the other person.

_______