Investigators say the Anoka County man who shot and killed two people at a northern Minnesota hotel before killing himself might have been in the midst of a mental health episode compounded by being under the influence of methamphetamine.

Police in January identified Nicholas Elliot Lenius, 32, of Ramsey, as the killer of hotel clerk Shellby Marie Trettel, 22, of Cloquet, and Patrick Jeffrey Roers, 35, of Deer River, at the Super 8 in Cloquet.

Lenius and Roers were both guests at the hotel.

A toxicology report confirmed the drug was in Lenius’ bloodstream at the time of his death, according to a news release Monday from the Cloquet Police Department.

While conducting interviews during the investigation, police found that Lenius contacted a co-worker and referenced dealing with “monsters.”

After examining four of Lenius’ electronic devices, investigators determined he did not know the suspects.

According to search warrants, Lenius appeared to be on the phone with someone around the time of the incident.

During the investigation, officers spoke with Lenius’ work supervisor, who said he received a text message from Lenius that said, “WTF is going on.” Lenius’ supervisor then called Lenius at 6:30 p.m., which matches the time frame of the phone call on the video footage.

While searching a pickup truck registered to Lenius, police found a camera that appeared to have been actively recording.

Police were called at 6:33 p.m. Jan. 8 by a hotel employee who found Trettel and said she looked as if she had been attacked. Trettel was transported to a Duluth hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Police believe that Trettel was Lenius’ first victim. He then went outside and shot Roers multiple times while he was sitting inside a vehicle. Lenius then walked a short distance and fatally shot himself.

Based on surveillance footage, police believe the incident lasted about 10 minutes.