FBI sting stops alleged Mall of America ISIS attack: teen bought AK-47 from undercover agent

Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud walked out of an undercover FBI employee's vehicle in a Richfield, Minnesota, park on Tuesday carrying a duffel bag containing a Norinco AK-47 rifle, four magazines, and 200 rounds of ammunition — and straight into the hands of roughly 30 waiting agents. The 18-year-old Twin Cities resident had allegedly just told the man he believed to be a fellow ISIS member that he planned to use the weapon to shoot up the Mall of America's Hmong Arts Celebration on October 24. He never made it out of the parking lot.

Federal prosecutors unsealed a criminal complaint Wednesday in St. Paul. The complaint accuses Mohamud of accepting a firearm and ammunition while having reasonable cause to believe they would be used to commit a felony and a federal act of terrorism — charges that include providing or conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. He made his first court appearance Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Cowan Wright, who ordered him temporarily detained. A preliminary and detention hearing is scheduled for Monday, October 19.

They 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.— Daniel Rosen, U.S. Attorney for Minnesota

The arrest was the culmination of an investigation that began around December 2024, when a confidential FBI source started exchanging messages with Mohamud across multiple social media and encrypted messaging platforms. According to the complaint, those early conversations centered on Mohamud's alleged desire to travel to Somalia and join al-Shabaab. According to the complaint, he allegedly expressed eagerness in May 2025, telling the source he was "so excited to make hijrah" and that he wanted to go to Somalia, get married, and "fight the enemies of Allah." After later telling the source he lacked the funds to travel abroad, he allegedly turned his attention toward carrying out an attack within the United States.

Mohamud had allegedly narrowed his focus by July to two possible targets: the Mall of America in Bloomington or Valleyfair amusement park in Shakopee. According to court documents, he told the source he wanted to attack the mall "because it's owned by Jewish" people, and added that killing even 30 people would mean "noone would go there anymore." Among the attacks he cited as inspiration were the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, the New Year's Eve attack in New Orleans, and last year's antisemitic attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia. 'I just walk in and shoot,' he allegedly wrote.

The specific target date emerged last month. Mohamud allegedly told the source he wanted to strike during the Hmong Arts Celebration on October 24, writing 'I can't wait until I kill kuffar man. In a message to the source, he allegedly wrote that October 24 was "the day insha Allah" because "it will be a lot of people." A video he sent the source via Discord purportedly showed him pledging allegiance to ISIS. By August, he had begun arranging a meetup to purchase an AK-47, and the two settled on October 6 for the transaction.

At that meeting, the undercover FBI employee handed Mohamud the duffel bag containing the rifle, magazines, and a container of approximately 200 live rounds of 7.62x39-caliber ammunition. The undercover agent identified himself to Mohamud as an ISIS member. When he asked about Mohamud's attack plans, Mohamud again allegedly described his intent to shoot up the festival at the mall, citing his belief that it was owned by Jewish people and his anger over what he described as bad treatment of Muslims following a May attack on an Islamic Center in San Diego. Upon exiting the vehicle, he was arrested at gunpoint.

The messages this defendant allegedly sent to others were chilling. They document the idolization of ideologically motivated violence, a callous disregard to 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.— Christopher Dotson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Minneapolis Field Office

One element of the investigation that U.S. Attorney Rosen highlighted publicly: the FBI had gone to Mohamud's home in May 2025 to warn his parents about signs of radicalization. According to Rosen, the parents were uncooperative and rebuffed the agents.

I just would say to parents all over Minnesota and, 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, heed those warnings.— Daniel Rosen, U.S. Attorney for Minnesota

Mohamud is a U.S. citizen born in the United States, according to Rosen. According to Fox News Digital, which cited multiple federal law enforcement sources, his parents are Somali nationals who later obtained U.S. citizenship through naturalization.

The case drew immediate responses from political figures. President Donald Trump praised the FBI's handling of the matter. FBI Director Kash Patel said the suspect "allegedly obtained a weapon he hoped to use in a mass casualty attack in support of ISIS, but this FBI arrested him and put a stop to his plans." Minnesota Governor Tim Walz expressed gratitude to law enforcement in a post on X, writing that the case was "exactly the kind of threat we need federal law enforcement working to prevent." House Speaker Mike Johnson described the arrest as "another example of how important law enforcement is to us" and contended that agencies require sufficient funding and public backing.

The Mall of America, which draws tens of millions of visitors each year and sits near Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, called the news 'unsettling' for guests, tenants, and employees, while thanking the FBI. Simon Osamoh, a former head of counterterrorism for the mall who now leads Kingswood Security Consulting, said the mall has layers of security including facial recognition, K9 teams, and undercover officers — but said the alleged plot did not surprise him, given the mall's history as a known target.

I was incredibly concerned but I wasn't surprised.— Simon Osamoh, CEO, Kingswood Security Consulting; former Mall of America counterterrorism head

Minnesota has seen previous terrorism prosecutions involving Somali Americans. In an earlier case, a group of Somali Americans faced accusations of conspiring to travel abroad to join ISIS; authorities intercepted some as they attempted to board flights to Syria, three were found guilty at trial, and additional defendants entered guilty pleas, according to CBS News.

Why it matters — The case illustrates both the reach of domestic ISIS radicalization and the FBI's use of long-running undercover stings to intercept suspects before an attack — a tactic that will face legal and ethical scrutiny as the case proceeds.

Reported by cbsnews.com, pbs.org, foxnews.com, abcnews.com, thehill.com