Minneapolis ISIS terrorist planned to shoot up Mall of America and slaughter as many non-Muslims as possible, FBI claims
A teenager who dreamed of joining ISIS in Somalia was planning to carry out a mass shooting at the Mall of America in Minnesota, federal authorities allege.
Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud, 18, was arrested on Tuesday in a public park in Richfield, directly after he purchased an AK-47 with 200 rounds of ammunition and four 30-round magazines from an undercover FBI employee.
The teen appeared for his initial hearing Wednesday in federal court in St. Paul wearing a yellow jail uniform.
‘This was a radicalized young man who needed to be watched,’ US Attorney Daniel Rosen said.
The 18-year-old had been on investigators’ radars for nearly two years, liaising with a confidential informant since December 2024, and had allegedly stated his intent to carry out a mass attack on US soil.
Before his arrest, the American-born US citizen of Somali descent allegedly discussed his hatred of non-Muslims and his desire to join forces with an Islamic terror group.
He floated the idea of joining al Qaeda and al Shabaab before deciding to support the Islamic State, according to the Department of Justice.
In text messages with the FBI informant, Mohamud repeatedly affirmed his intent to carry out an attack to kill non-Muslims at the mall on October 24, the date of a scheduled Hmong arts celebration, the complaint said.
Rosen warned of the potential extent of casualties Mohamud could have caused, stating agents ‘were able to detect a threat, and disrupt it, before the defendant carried out his intention to kill, in his words, maybe 30 to 60 people.’
Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud, 18, was arrested Tuesday in a public park in Richfield, several miles northwest of the Mall of America, after he paid $600 to an undercover FBI employee posing as a member of ISIS for an AK-47 and 200 rounds of ammunition, according to the criminal complaint
In text messages with the informant, Mohamud repeatedly affirmed his intent to carry out an attack to kill non-Muslims at the mall on October 24, the date of a scheduled Hmong arts celebration, the complaint said
Daniel Rosen a US attorney emphasized the potential harm the attack could have caused, had it gone ahead and warned parents across America to look out for signs their child is being radicalized
When asked to state his motivation for the intended attack, Mohamud allegedly told the source he wanted to attack the Mall of America ‘because it’s owned by Jewish’ people, adding, ‘so if I kill even 30 people no one would go there anymore.’
He also cited the attack on an Islamic Center in San Diego as incentivizing his planned violence, saying he was ‘angry at the bad treatment of Muslims’, the FBI said.
Rosen and FBI special agent Christopher Dodson detailed communications between Mohamud and the FBI source where he allegedly detailed his aspirations of martyrdom, highlighting one where he discussed just getting a ‘gun here and just start killing a bunch of white ppl.’
Throughout their communications, the FBI said Mohamud expressed admiration for recent terror attacks and suggested he had drawn inspiration in his planned attacks from Omar Mateen, the Pulse nightclub shooter.
Rosen and Dodson noted that the sheer volume of messages showed he was ‘100% committed’ to carrying out an attack.
‘The messages this defendant allegedly sent to others were chilling,’ Dodson said, adding: ‘They show the idolization of ideologically motivated violence, a callous disregard for the sanctity of human life, a blind hatred of people of other faiths, and a cold commitment to carrying out his vision of violence in our community.’
Rosen revealed that in May 2025, after being alerted to the teens’ distribution of extremist content online, the FBI ventured to Mohamud’s house to attempt to speak to his parents and de-escalate the situation but were turned away and told to contact his father’s lawyer.
By August, Mohamud allegedly began facilitating a meetup with the source to purchase an AK-47 and ammunition, and Mohamud sent the following pictures of himself so the source could recognize him, prosecutors said.
Mohamud originally conveyed interest in traveling to Somalia to join ISIS in 2024 but when it became apparent he lacked the money to travel abroad, he set his sights on martyrdom and committing mass violence at home instead, court documents state
In September, the informant tried to talk Mohamud out of such an attack. He replied, ‘I am 100% committed to the cause of dying for the sake of Allah only’
By May 2025, agents were concerned enough that they went to his home. His mother told them he wasn’t home from school yet and called the boy’s father, who declined to speak with them and said he would give their contact information to his lawyer, the complaint said
Dotson said FBI agents had asked to meet with Mohamud’s parents last year when it became apparent he was being radicalized online, but they declined the intervention.
During the setup on Tuesday undercover agent handed Mohamud a large duffel bag containing an AK-47 rifle and four magazines as well as a container with 200 rounds of ammunition, according to prosecutors.
Upon exiting the vehicle, Mohamud was taken into custody at gunpoint by FBI agents, the affidavit says.
‘I just would say to parents all over Minnesota, for that matter, all over America: If you get the indication, especially if you hear from federal law enforcement that your son or daughter is being radicalized to the point where federal law enforcement wants to come and give you that warning, those are warnings that ought to be heeded,’ Rosen concluded.
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