18-Year-Old Accused Of Plotting ISIS-Inspired Mass Shooting At Mall Of America

BLOOMINGTON, MN — An 18-year-old man is accused of planning a mass shooting at the Mall of America on behalf of the Islamic State, federal authorities announced Wednesday.

Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud was arrested at gunpoint Tuesday in Richfield, right after he paid $600 in cash to an undercover FBI employee for an AK-47 rifle, four 30-round magazines and 200 rounds of ammunition, according to court documents.

Investigators had made the rifle inoperable before the handoff.

Mohamud is charged with receiving a firearm and ammunition knowing they would be used to commit a federal crime of terrorism, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota.

"Because of that vigilance and that diligence, FBI was able to stop this," U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Daniel Rosen said at a news conference Wednesday alongside Christopher Dotson, special agent in charge of the FBI's Minneapolis field office.

According to an FBI affidavit filed with the complaint, the investigation began in December 2024, when Mohamud started messaging a confidential FBI source about traveling overseas to join ISIS or al-Shabaab, both designated foreign terrorist organizations.

Over the following nearly two years, he repeatedly told the source he wanted to fight abroad, and said that if he couldn't raise enough money for the trip, he would carry out an attack in Minnesota instead, the affidavit says.

By mid-2026, Mohamud had told the source he planned to buy a gun and open fire at the Bloomington mall, according to the affidavit.

He eventually chose Oct. 24, the date of a Hmong Arts Celebration scheduled at the mall, because he expected it to draw a large crowd.

Court documents say he stated his intent to kill "Chinese Vietnamese and other kuffar," a term for non-Muslims, attending the event. The affidavit says he intended to kill "30 to 60" people.

Authorities say Mohamud recorded a video pledging allegiance to ISIS and its current leader. He also told the undercover employee that his anger over a deadly shooting at a San Diego Islamic center earlier this year was part of his motivation, according to the complaint.

During the weapons purchase, Mohamud repeated his plan to attack the Hmong festival, called himself "an active member of ISIS" and said part of his motivation was that the mall was owned by Jews, the complaint states.

Rosen said investigators decided to move in once Mohamud began discussing dates and methods for an attack, and acted "at the soonest possible time."

Rosen also said the FBI tried to speak with Mohamud's parents in 2025 after seeing signs he was becoming radicalized, but those attempts were rebuffed.

"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 said.

Asked about Mohamud's age, Rosen said, "He is 18 and he is an adult, and we're going to arrest adults who are engaged in this sort of activity."

Rosen declined to say where Mohamud lives or whether he is in high school, citing the early stage of the prosecution. He said he was not aware of any mental health issues or gang affiliation involving Mohamud.

U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer, the Minnesota Republican who serves as House majority whip, thanked the FBI and local police for stopping the plot in a post on X Wednesday.

"This is just another example of a large rise in Islamic extremism, which is disrupting our country's values and way of life," Emmer wrote. "This kind of religious extremism and terrorism will never be accepted in the United States of America."

Sherburne County Jail records show Mohamud was booked into the jail at 2:54 p.m. Tuesday on a federal hold.