Authorities say man who killed 2 in small Minnesota town didn't know his victims

CLOQUET, Minn. — 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.