CLOQUET, Minn. — Investigators in northern Minnesota say a double murder at a motel in northern Minnesota appears to be an act of random violence, perhaps triggered by methamphetamine in the shooter's system.
Cloquet police issued what they called a "final update" on Super 8 shootings that took place both inside, and in the parking lot of the Super 8 on the night of Jan. 9, 2024. In a news release posted on the department's X (Twitter) account, Police Chief Derek Randall says his team of investigators has analyzed interviews, cell phone data and toxicology reports and additional evidence and came to the conclusion that shooter Nicholas Lenius did not know his victims before pulling the trigger.
"After examining four of the suspect's electronic devices, we did not uncover any evidence or information indicating that the suspect had any prior knowledge of or communication with either of the victims involved in the incident," Randall said in the release.
Toxicology reports indicate Lenius had methamphetamine in his system at the time he killed 22-year-old motel clerk Shellby Trettel of Cloquet, before heading out to the parking lot and fatally shooting 35-year-old construction worker Patrick Roers of Deer River. Chief Randall says during interviews investigators learned Lenius contacted a co-worker and referenced dealing with "monsters," indicating he may have been experiencing a mental health episode that was "compounded by the influence of drugs (methamphetamine)."
The department is sending the final investigative report to the Carlton County Attorney's Office for review.
Cloquet police and additional law enforcement agencies responded to the Super 8 just after 6:30 p.m. Jan. 9 after a 911 call from an employee, who said a coworker had been attacked. Officers immediately located Trettel near the check-in counter and had her transported to a Duluth hospital, where she died of complications from a gunshot wound. A shelter-in-place order was issued for the community while police searched for the gunman and additional victims. They found Roers inside a vehicle in the parking lot, dead after being shot multiple times.
Lenius was the last one discovered, lying outside the motel with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Investigators reviewed surveillance video from the hotel and said it identified Lenius as the person who killed both Trettel and Roers.
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