St. Paul man charged after YouTube videos threatened Mayor Her, referenced lawmaker shootings
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - A St. Paul man is accused of posting YouTube videos that threatened current St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her during her time as a legislator and referenced the shootings that killed Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband and wounded Minnesota Sen. John Hoffman and his wife.
Pao Her Lee, 49, was charged via summons in Ramsey County with one count of threats of violence and two counts of harassment.
The charges stem from two YouTube videos prosecutors say Lee posted on June 14, 2025, shortly after a gunman killed Rep. Hortman and her husband, Mark, and wounded Sen. Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. Authorities allege the videos referenced the attacks and threatened Her, who was serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives at the time.
Investigating threatening videos
The backstory:
Court documents say the Minnesota State Patrol Capitol Security Division received a report in July 2025 from a legislator, identified by the Hennpin County Attorney's Office as Mayor Her, who served in the Minnesota House of Representatives. Her reported two videos had been circulating online that "called on the Hmong community to kill her," according to the complaint.
An image attached to the email reportedly showed the faces of Her, House Speaker Melissa Hortman, and Sen. John Hoffman. According to the complaint, both Her and Hortman were depicted with bullet holes in their foreheads.
Charges claim the videos were created and posted on June 14, 2025, the same day Rep. Hortman and her husband were fatally shot in their Brooklyn Park home, and Sen. Hoffman and his wife were shot and injured in their Champlin home.
A Hmong-speaking investigator reviewed one of the videos, and portions were summarized in the complaint. Prosecutors allege the narrator discussed whether Her and her husband would be killed, saying, "Will [victim] get to ride a white horse like Melissa Hortman?"
The narrator claimed Her "is a mean person and has locked up many Hmong people" and asked, "If we knocked on her door, will she be terrified?" the complaint states.
Later in the video, the narrator allegedly stated, "All three—Melissa, the senator, and [the legislator]—will be killed for all their crimes and corruption," according to the complaint. The narrator discussed the Second Amendment right to bear arms against the government and claimed, "that is what we saw today with the killing of Melissa Hortman and the shooting of the senator."
Lee claims he posted the videos ‘to be funny’
Dig deeper:
When investigators spoke with Lee in July 2025, he denied any knowledge of the YouTube videos. In a follow-up conversation in December 2025, Lee allegedly said he had no intention of harming the legislator and had posted the videos "to be funny because he works as a blogger and the other politicians had recently been killed or shot," the complaint read.
Lee allegedly told investigators he took the videos down and made them private after law enforcement spoke with him in July.
Her reportedly said she does not know Lee and after watching the videos she felt "concerned for herself and terrified for her family." She reportedly told investigators 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.
What's next:
Lee is scheduled to make his first appearance in court on July 10, according to court records.
The Source: This story uses information from a Ramsey County Criminal Complaint and a Hennepin County Attorney's Office statement.