Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson has halted his campaign after his 22-year-old daughter, Hallie Marie Tobler, was found fatally stabbed in the St. Cloud apartment she shared with her husband, who is now charged with her murder.
Police say a friend went to check on Hallie on Friday night after not hearing from her for several days and discovered her body in the bathroom of the locked apartment near 33rd Street South and 40th Avenue.
Officers and medical responders pronounced her dead at the scene, and the Midwest Medical Examiner's Office later concluded she died from multiple stab wounds to her chest, back, head, and neck. Investigators have described the case as a domestic homicide and say there is no sign that the attack was random, according to NBC News.
Hallie's husband, 23-year-old Dylan Michael Tobler, was also inside the residence and appeared to have serious injuries that authorities believe came from self-inflicted knife wounds.
He was taken to a hospital in St. Cloud for treatment, then medically cleared and transferred to the Stearns County Jail. Prosecutors in Stearns County have charged him with second-degree murder, a felony count that carries a possible sentence of up to 40 years in prison if he is convicted.
According to the criminal complaint, Dylan Tobler told investigators that he "thought he was at fault" for what happened to his wife and for his own wounds, calling the situation "a mess," Fox9 reported.
When officers asked what he believed would happen next, they say he tapped his chest and answered with a single word: "Jail." The exact timing of the stabbing remains unclear, and investigators are still working to piece together the events leading up to Hallie's death.
Jeff Johnson, a Republican who had been running for governor in 2026, suspended his campaign after learning of his daughter's killing. In a statement, the Republican Party of Minnesota said Johnson stepped away from the race "out of respect for his family and the enormity of this loss" and asked Minnesotans to keep the family in their thoughts.
State and local authorities, including the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, continue to investigate and have urged anyone with information to contact St. Cloud police or Tri-County Crime Stoppers, as per People.
