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Michael Mcwhorter, 29, Joe Morris, 22, and Michael B. Hari, 47,
were accused of carrying out a pipe bomb attack on the Dar
al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, on Aug. 5
that damaged the building but caused no injuries, according to a
statement from the Minnesota U.S. Attorney's Office.
A representative from that office was not immediately able to
identify lawyers who might be representing the men, who are in
custody in Illinois. The Illinois U.S. Attorney's Office did not
immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Dar al-Farooq mosque mainly serves Somalis in the
Minneapolis area. Minnesota has the largest Somali community in
the United States, according to the most recent census
estimates.
Police in Bloomington were called in the early morning of Aug. 5
about an explosion at the mosque, after a bomb was thrown from a
van or truck through the window of the imam's office while
worshipers were gathered for morning prayers, and the vehicle
was seen speeding away.
The three suspects were arrested by FBI agents in Illinois and
also charged with possession of assault rifles, which are
classified as machine guns, and an attempted bombing of the
Women’s Health Practice in Champaign, Illinois on Nov. 7,
according to a statement from the Illinois U.S. Attorney's
Office in Springfield.
A fourth man Ellis Mack, 18, was arrested for possession of an
assault rifle, federal prosecutors in Illinois said.
All four men are from Clarence, 35 miles (56 km) north of
Champaign-Urbana.
Anti-Muslim incidents rose sharply in the United States in the
year after the 2016 U.S. presidential election, according to a
review by the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
(Reporting by Andrew Hay in New Mexico; Editing by Peter Cooney)
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