The FBI accused an 18-year-old man of shopping for an AK-47 assault rifle with plans to commit a mass taking pictures in assist of ISIS on the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, the biggest indoor shopping center in North America.
Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud, of Richfield, Minnesota, was charged on Wednesday with one rely of knowingly receiving a firearm and ammunition so as to commit a federal crime of terrorism, in line with a federal grievance filed on Wednesday.
Mohamud’s lawyer didn’t reply to JTA’s request for remark.
Mohamud needed to assault the Mall of America as a result of he believed its homeowners to be Jewish, the FBI mentioned in a press release. He deliberate to kill between 30 and 60 folks, in line with messages he exchanged with a confidential supply, in line with the grievance.
Mall of America is owned and operated by Triple 5 Group, managed by the Ghermezian household, a Canadian household of Iranian Jewish origin.
Messages despatched in September 2026 included a video wherein Mohamud pledged allegiance to ISIS, the grievance mentioned. He deliberate his assault for Oct. 24 as a result of he anticipated a crowd on the Hmong Arts Celebration scheduled for that day.
The grievance mentioned an undercover FBI agent offered an AK-47 rendered inoperable, 4 30-round magazines and 200 rounds of ammunition to Mohamud for $600 on Oct. 6. Through the sale, Mohamud confirmed his plans to commit a mass taking pictures. Mohamud was arrested shortly after the sale.
The grievance mentioned Mohamud needed to commit an assault just like the 2016 Pulse nightclub taking pictures wherein 49 victims have been killed; the Bondi Seashore mass-shooting in Sydney final December, throughout which 15 victims have been killed throughout a Hanukkah celebration; and a New Orleans truck-ramming assault that killed 14 victims in New Orleans on Jan. 1, 2025.
The investigation into Mohamud started round December 2024, when he messaged the confidential supply on a number of social media platforms, in line with the grievance, detailing his want to journey to Somalia to affix a gaggle that the U.S. has designated a overseas terrorist group. If journey was not attainable because of monetary constraints, he mentioned would transfer ahead with an assault in Minnesota.
Because the 12 months Turns, Help the Journalism You Belief. JTA covers the tales shaping Jewish life around the globe — with the depth this second requires. As you replicate on the 12 months forward, think about a present that retains unbiased Jewish journalism sturdy.
