Ex-St. Catherine Student Set Fires As Payback To US: Charge

SAINT PAUL, MN — A former St. Catherine University student was charged with arson in connection with a series of fires set at the college’s campus in Saint Paul. Tnuza Jamal Hassan, 19, of Minneapolis, told police she started the fires “because she’s been reading about the U.S. military destroying schools in Iraq or Afghanistan and she felt that she should do exactly the same thing,” a criminal complaint states.

“You guys are lucky that l don’t know how to build a bomb because l would have done that,” Hassan told police.

Four fires were started on campus Jan. 17. No injuries or major damage occured.

One fire was in Saint Mary Hall, a dormitory that also houses a daycare. A chair set on fire caused the sprinkler system to activate, preventing the blaze from spreading. There were 33 children present when the fire was set, according to police.

Another fire was started in the bathroom of Butler Hall.

Campus security reviewed surveillance video that recorded Hassan entering Saint Mary Hall carrying a plastic shopping bag containing a box of matches, according to police. Hassan was arrested on campus.

Hassan said she dropped out of St. Catherine’s last fall because she and her family were planning to vacation in Ethiopia. When interviewed, Hassan told police “her fire-starting was not as successful as she had wanted” and that she “wanted the school to burn to the ground and that her intent was to hurt people,” according to the criminal complaint.

“Hassan said this was the same thing that happened in ‘Muslim land’ and nobody cares if they get hurt, so why not do this?” the complaint states.

Hassan said she also wrote a letter to her roommates containing radical ideas about supporting Muslims and bringing back the Caliphate, according to police. The letter scared her roommates, who turned it over to campus security.

"While this was an unfortunate and stressful event, I am thankful we are all safe and for the wonderful and fast response of our Public Safety team along with the local police and fire departments," St. Catherine President Becky Roloff said in a statement. "Their thorough and quick actions helped ensure we were kept informed and the situation was resolved as quickly as possible."

Several sources told KSTP the FBI is now investigating Hassan. Ramsey County Attorney spokesperson Dennis Gerhardstein did not confirm the FBI’s involvement but told the news station the case currently involves multiple law enforcement agencies.

Hassan's next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 28.

Image via Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office