Manhunt underway for Minnesota grandmother accused of murdering husband and her look-alike

Police across the country are on the lookout for Lois Riess, accused of murdering her husband in Minnesota and a woman who looked like her in Florida.

The 56-year-old grandmother allegedly shot and killed her husband, David, last month, and then went on the lam, eventually winding up in Fort Myers, Florida. There, she met 59-year-old Pamela Hutchinson, and after befriending Hutchinson, she allegedly killed her and then stole her credit cards, driver's license, and white Acura, which has been seen in Texas and Louisiana. "This is the first time in my career that I've seen someone steal someone's identity and target them for the way they look, in order to murder them," Lee County, Florida, Undersheriff Carmine Marceno told NBC News.

Authorities consider Riess armed and dangerous, and Marceno said he believes she will eventually "have no resources, and she will become more desperate and may kill again." Police describe Riess as being 5-foot-5, 165 pounds, with brown eyes, blonde hair, and a history of gambling problems. "She smiles and looks like anyone's mother or grandmother," Marceno said. "And yet she's calculated, she's targeted, and an absolute cold-blooded killer." Catherine Garcia

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

YouTube

Watch On