The FBI arrested an 18-year-old Minnesota man accused of pledging allegiance to ISIS and plotting a Mall of America mass shooting after he bought a rifle from undercover agents.
Fox News reported that Sheikhdoon Abdullahi Mohamud was taken into custody after he met an undercover FBI employee, paid $600 for an AK-47-style rifle, four magazines, and roughly 200 rounds of ammunition, and left the vehicle with the gear in a duffel bag.
Agents arrested him at gunpoint. The rifle had been rendered inoperable. The ammunition was live. Federal authorities say he intended to use the weapon in a high-traffic public attack in support of ISIS.
Mohamud, a U.S. citizen born in the United States, appeared Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Cowan Wright in Minnesota federal court for an eight-minute initial hearing. The judge ordered him temporarily detained. A preliminary and detention hearing was set for Monday, Oct. 19, at 11 a.m. ET.
He faces a charge of knowingly receiving a firearm and ammunition while knowing or having reasonable cause to believe they would be used to commit a felony and a federal crime of terrorism.
The FBI Minneapolis Field Office opened the investigation around December 2024. Agents used a confidential human source who communicated with Mohamud over encrypted messaging and social media for months.
Court papers describe a clear arc. In May, Mohamud allegedly told the source he was “so excited to make hijrah,” wanted to go to Somalia, get married, and “fight the enemies of Allah.” He planned to work about six weeks to save $2,000 for a plane ticket.
By July he said he lacked the money to travel. His message shifted: “so i will do attack here.” He discussed buying two pistols online and hitting the Mall of America or the Minnesota State Fair around Christmas.
In September the target hardened. He allegedly wrote that he could not wait to kill “kuffar” and set October 24 as the day. He pointed to a Hmong Arts Celebration at the Mall of America in Bloomington as a crowd-heavy event. He also allegedly sent a selfie-style video pledging allegiance to ISIS and its leader.
On Sept. 25 the source told him a “brother” could sell an AK-style rifle, magazines, and ammunition. Mohamud indicated he wanted the weapon fully automatic.
That set up the Tuesday meeting. Special Agent in Charge Christopher Dotson of FBI Minneapolis described what followed at a Wednesday press conference.
"Muhammad met with someone he believed to be a loyal member of ISIS to attempt to purchase an AK-47 rifle, knowing it would be used in a felony or federal crime of terrorism,"
Dotson said. He added that Mohamud planned to use the gun in a high-traffic public area within a few weeks in support of a designated foreign terrorist organization.
Affidavit language captured the alleged intent in plain terms. One quoted message read:
"I can’t wait until I kill kuffar man. October 24 is the day insha Allah,"
Another passage described driving “straight to the crowded place and start shooting.” He allegedly called the planned target a “kuffar festival” at the Mall of America.
FBI Director Kash Patel praised the Minneapolis office and framed the arrest as part of a broader push against terror threats.
"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."
Patel said the bureau is “moving more effectively than we ever have before at stopping terrorists before they can attack Americans,” citing more than 1,100 individuals prevented from conducting attacks, more than 4,000 foreign terrorist organization-related disruptions and arrests, and a 38% increase. He thanked FBI Minneapolis for work that “likely saved lives.”
President Donald Trump, speaking to reporters Wednesday, kept the assessment short and direct.
"I did hear about it. And they did a great job. The FBI did a great job,"
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz posted on X that he was “Grateful for the swift and professional action to keep Minnesotans safe,” calling it “exactly the kind of threat we need federal law enforcement working to prevent.”
The Mall of America issued its own statement thanking the FBI and partners “for their vigilance and extraordinary investigative work in identifying, disrupting and removing this threat and protecting the community we all share.” Officials there said the news was unsettling for guests, tenants, employees, and the wider community, and that safety remains the highest priority.
Multiple federal law enforcement sources told Fox News Digital that Mohamud’s parents were Somali nationals who later became naturalized U.S. citizens. They arrived in the United States through a New York City airport in 2000. His mother naturalized in 2010. His father naturalized in 2017.
Mohamud himself is a U.S.-born citizen. The affidavit narrative shows an early desire to leave for Somalia and join al-Shabaab, then a pivot once money for travel ran short: attack at home instead. The controlled buy and arrest stopped that plan before any shooting occurred. No injuries from an actual attack are reported.
Open questions remain in the public record so far. Full docket details and exact statute citations beyond the charge description were not laid out in the initial reporting. Absolute calendar dates for every May, July, and September conversation sit inside the broader December 2024 start of the probe. Whether any co-conspirators exist is not established in the material released.
What is established is the sequence: months of alleged ISIS support and attack talk, a specific October 24 target window at a crowded mall event, a cash purchase of a rifle and live ammunition from an undercover employee, and a gunpoint arrest as he walked away with the duffel bag.
Federal agents did the job they are paid to do, find the plot, control the weapons, and take the suspect off the street before civilians paid the price. That is the standard Americans should demand every time.
