US teen charged over alleged Daesh-inspired mall shooting plot

U.S. authorities arrested an 18-year-old man from Minnesota on Wednesday, alleging he planned a mass shooting at the Mall of America inspired by the extremist group Daesh, also known as ISIS. The FBI executed a sting operation, purchasing an AK-47 rifle and ammunition from Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud, who was apprehended in the plot.

Prosecutors claim Mohamud intended to kill between 30 and 60 people at the mall, targeting individuals perceived as non-Muslims during a Hmong Arts Celebration on October 24. FBI Director Kash Patel stated the arrest prevented what would have been a mass casualty attack. Mohamud is charged with knowingly receiving a firearm to commit a federal terrorism crime and appeared before a federal judge on the same day.