MINNEAPOLIS — Federal prosecutors have charged an 18-year-old Minnesota man with receiving a firearm and ammunition to commit a federal terrorism crime, accusing him of plotting a mass shooting at the Mall of America in support of ISIS.
Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud of Richfield was arrested Oct. 6 after an undercover FBI agent sold him an AK-47 rifle, about 200 rounds of ammunition and four 30-round magazines for $600, according to the criminal complaint. Prosecutors say Mohamud told an informant he planned to kill 30 to 60 people at an event at the mall in late October.
Mohamud identified Oct. 24 as the date of his planned attack, telling the informant he chose it because many Asians and other “kuffar” — a term for non-Muslims — would be attending an arts event, federal prosecutors said. In messages dating to July 2026, he allegedly discussed his intent to carry out the shooting and claimed the mall’s owners were Jewish.
“As alleged in the criminal complaint, Mohamud took substantial steps to plot to murder innocent people in the name of ISIS,” U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen for the District of Minnesota said in a statement. FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau “arrested him and put a stop to his plans,” adding that it would “continue to use every resource we have to detect and prevent acts of terrorism.”
The Justice Department said Mohamud expressed a desire in September 2026 to kill “kuffar.” The Mall of America, near Minneapolis, is the largest mall in the United States, with more than 500 stores, a theme park and an aquarium.
Mohamud is in federal custody. The charges carry the presumption of innocence, and prosecutors stressed that the allegations in the complaint have yet to be proven in court.
