Teen wannabe ISIS terrorist plotted to slaughter dozens of non-Muslims at Mall of America, FBI says

An 18-year-old man allegedly paid $600 in exchange for an AK-47 and 200 rounds of ammunition before getting arrested by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud allegedly plotted a terrorist attack on non-Muslims at the Mall of America for two years, according to U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen.

'This was a radicalized young man who needed to be watched.'

The suspect believed he was purchasing the items for his attack from a member of the ISIS terrorist group, but the person was in fact an undercover FBI agent.

Among the evidence gathered by the FBI were messages Mohamud allegedly exchanged with an FBI informant about his terrorist mission.

Mohamud was arrested on Tuesday after allegedly making the exchange, prosecutors revealed Wednesday.

"The FBI rendered the AK-47 rifle inert prior to the transaction," the DOJ said.

"During the sale of the firearm and ammunition, Mohamud reaffirmed his plan to use the firearm and ammunition to shoot people at the Mall of America," it added.

Mohamud allegedly indicated that he wanted to attack the Minneapolis mall on Oct. 24, the day of an arts celebration for the Hmong people, an ethnic group from China and Southeast Asia. He also allegedly claimed to have picked the site because it is owned by Jews, the DOJ press release said.

Rosen described Mohamud as an American citizen of Somali descent.

The messages obtained by the FBI allegedly showed that he wanted to go to Somalia to join ISIS but decided to attack the mall instead because he could not afford to travel. He intended to kill between 30 and 60 people at the mall, and he sought martyrdom, according to the FBI.

He has been charged with one count of knowingly receiving a firearm and ammunition in order to commit a federal crime of terrorism.

"This was a radicalized young man who needed to be watched," Rosen said.

FBI Director Kash Patel posted a statement about the operation on social media.

"ARRESTED before he could hurt a single American," he wrote. "This FBI doesn't wait for terrorists to attack. We find them, disrupt them, and put them in handcuffs. Outstanding work by our Minneapolis team. We are staying on offense. America First. ALWAYS."

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The FBI said it began tracking Mohamud in Dec. 2024 and had spoken to his parents about his radicalization.

"What I would say to parents all over Minnesota, and all over America: If you get any 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.

Booking records indicated that Mohamud is 5'11" tall and weighs 120 pounds.

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