Police issue urgent 'Amber alert' after pregnant woman and four kids kidnapped at gunpoint

Police are urgently seeking to located a pregnant woman and her four children who were kidnapped by her gun-toting boyfriend.

Minnesota authorities have requested public assistance in locating Nikkole Dobson, age 33, and her four children Brandon, 14, Haley, 11, Gracie, seven, and Chloe, three. The Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office said they were abducted after a man drove to the property where they were staying and fired a rifle round into the roof before forcing them into his van.

The office said in a statement posted to X, formerly , that the four were taken by her boyfriend, Chad Aanerud, who drove them away in a Chrysler Pacifica minivan. He abducted the family after firing a rifle round into the ceiling of the residence where they were staying.

The statement read: "The Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office is requesting assistance locating a pregnant woman and her four children who were abducted at gunpoint around 1.50 am on Friday, November 1, from a residence northeast of Brainerd. Dobson and her children were taken by her boyfriend, Chad Aanerud, age 35, 6 feet, 2 inches tall, 185 pounds, with brown hair and hazel eyes.

"Aanerud is driving a white, 2017, Chrysler Pacifica minivan with Minnesota license place AEC 351. Aanerud arrived at a residence on the 15000 block of Loerch Road where Dobson and her children were staying around 1.50 am. He fired a rifle round into the ceiling of the residence and forced Dobson and her children to leave with him."

"Aanerud is also suspected of fatally shooting a man at a separate nearby residence and burning down a home on that property. Authorities have urged people to call if they have information regarding Aanerud or the abduction. But they have been advised not to approach the man, who may still be armed.

The statement continued: "Unknown direction of travel. If you encounter Aanerud DO NOT APPOACH. Call 911 immediately with any information." Amber alerts are part of a police early warning system in Minnesota and elsewhere in the US that allow police to quickly inform the public when a child is believed to be in danger by collaborating with local broadcasters.