Man stabs 9 at Minnesota mall before cop kills him
ASSOCIATED PRESS
People stood near the entrance on the north side of Crossroads Center mall between Macy’s and Target as officials investigated a reported multiple stabbing incident.
ST. CLOUD, Minn. » A man in a private security uniform stabbed eight people at a Minnesota shopping mall, reportedly mentioning Allah and asking at least one victim if they were Muslim before an off-duty police officer shot and killed him, authorities said.
All nine victims were treated at hospitals for wounds that weren’t life-threatening, St. Cloud police Chief Blair Anderson said at a news conference today. Three remained hospitalized. The others were released.
The attack happened at around 8 p.m. Saturday at the Crossroads Center in St. Cloud, a city of about 65,000 people 60 miles northwest of Minneapolis.
A man in a security uniform and armed with a knife entered the mall and stabbed people in several locations, including corridors, businesses and common areas, the chief said.
Five minutes after authorities received the first 911 call, Jason Falconer, a part-time officer in the city of Avon, shot and killed the attacker, whose name hasn’t been released. Anderson said Falconer fired as the attacker was lunging at him with the knife, and continued to engage him as the attacker got up three times.
“He clearly prevented additional injuries and potential loss of life,” Anderson said.
“Officer Falconer was there at the right time and right place,” he said.
Anderson earlier said the man reportedly made at least one reference to Allah and asked a victim if they were Muslim before attacking them.
FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Rick Thornton said the attack was being investigated as a possible act of terrorism, but that agents were still digging into the attacker’s background and possible motives.
An Islamic State-run news agency, Rasd, claimed today that the attacker was a “soldier of the Islamic State” who had heeded the group’s calls for attacks in countries that are part of a U.S.-led anti-IS coalition.
It was not immediately clear if the extremist group had planned the attack or even knew about it beforehand. IS has encouraged so-called “lone wolf” attacks. It has also claimed past attacks that are not believed to have been planned by its central leadership.
Authorities didn’t identify the attacker, but Anderson earlier said police had had three previous encounters with him, mostly for minor traffic violations. He said authorities have no reason to believe anyone else was involved in the attack. The FBI is helping with the investigation.
The attack began shortly after an explosion in a crowded New York City neighborhood injured 29 people. A suspicious device was found a few blocks away and safely removed. Hours before that, a pipe bomb exploded in Seaside Park, New Jersey, shortly before thousands of runners were due to participate in a charity 5K race. There was no indication that any of the incidents were linked.
The St. Cloud mall remained on lockdown following the attack, and authorities eventually released those inside. It was closed today.
Photos and video of the mall taken hours after the incident showed groups of shoppers waiting to be released, including some huddled together near a food court entrance.
Harley and Tama Exsted, of Isle, were in St. Cloud to watch their son play in a college golf tournament and were in the mall when the attack happened.
“All of a sudden I heard pop, pop, pop,” Harley Exsted told the St. Cloud Times. “I thought someone tipped over a shelf. All of a sudden these people started running. I just saw everybody running our way.”
The couple were unharmed and said they helped another woman who was running from the scene to her car.
Adonis Samuels, 42, of St. Cloud, was outside the mall where his wife Roxanne works as a manager at Clinique at Macy’s.
“She called me on the phone and told me she was hiding under the counter with a customer,” Samuels said. She later called and said she was safe in a secured area.
Samuels remained outside, watching for her. He said he’d seen her through the glass doors at one point so he knew she was safe.
Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut, Lebanon, and Amy Forliti in Minneapolis contributed to this report.
29 responses to “Man stabs 9 at Minnesota mall before cop kills him”
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The Muslim community needs to identify islamic extremists among them to the FBI. They know who the terrorists are in their Mosques but so far have done little to nothing to report them. CAIR publicly denounces islamic terrorism every time it happens but privately, they protect the identity of radical Muslims and choose to look the other way. These people are just as guilty as the terrorists.
Muslim murderers in our cities are the result of an insane immigration policy. Elect Hillary and it will mean even wider open borders.
And you know this guy was an immigrant exactly how again?
True. This lone wolf was likely unconnected to ISIS other than claiming he had some love for them. There are many unstable people out there. Islam is not the cause of that. Trump is a strutting fool who has never given any indication he would stop random terrorism. This stabber was likely already in America and likely a US citizen. That has been the case with many other incidents in past years.
How would you know? Maybe you should work for the FBI as a criminal profiler.
ISIS already claimed this clown as a “soldier of Islam.” Will you admit you are lame apologist for evil and just…go quiet for a while.
If this ain’t terrorism stabbing multi people I don’t what is. Anderson is a Democrat!
I’m not pc. Allahu Akbar!
O says dat AA thang in the closet.
all knives should be registered–and then banned.
I’d be remiss if I don’t suggest adding Ice Cream trucks to that list.
So all of the previous killings using guns, both terrorism and not, didn’t actually happen?
It is terrorism but unlikely international terrorism. I biked over to Manoa Safeway this morning and heard a Hawaiian woman screaming she hated Cladwell. Some felt intimidated by her fury. International terrorist? Ummm…no.
could use of the word intimidated mean some type of fear or overpower by some other force. I equate fear on the part of the recipient of intimidation. I don’t know, I’m not a Webster Dictionary but just an ill informed JoeSixPack
oh, isn’t terrorists trying to instill fear on it’s victims? getting too deep for me thinking of use of words. Yikes!
Who the hell is Cladwell?
Vote for Hillary – she will put an end to this incorrect stuff, even if it takes her eight years.
Oh please. Holary is corrupt and will destroy this country. Trump is the person we need. Wake up Sheep
Anyone vote for Hilliary is an elitest bigot.
Certainly not good for Hillary. I’m surprised that obviously pro-Democrat SA even posted this.
Anyone notice? An off duty officer, allowed to carry a firearm, took this guy out. Lucky there just happened to be an off duty officer around with all those disarmed civilians in danger.
I noticed. His name is Falconer, a former police chief from a nearby community who has a firing range and teaches firearm training for concealed carry classes.
I know St. Cloud well. My stepfather’s home town, a wonderful German Catholic town about the size of Wahiawa, which has become infested with Somali Muslims.
I remember in the fifties there, people seldom locked their doors.
It’s the Catholic, and Lutheran charities among others that are facilitating the invasion.
btw, the knifer is id’d as Dahir Adnan, a Somali.
Extra security at the Vikings/Packers game.
In July 2016, someone placed a TATP homemade pressure bomb hidden in a bag in New York City’s central park. A tourist stepped on it and lost his leg.
Practice for the Sept 11th anniversary? It does not take a genius to connect the dots that there are sleeper cells in major American cities. Possibly, these attacks that occurred on Saturday (New Jersey marathon bomb, New York City bomb and ths Minnesota mall stabbings were all supposed to have occurred in Sept 11th but were delayed due to the heightened levels of security).
Keep voting for democrats if you want more of this. Thruth is many progressives look at America as unworthy of defending due to past injustices. It’s fashionable among progressives to look at America as the great oppressor. Just like 9/11 was payback for our middle east policy the madness continues.
Question, what do you think was the cause of the 9/11 attacks?
Why don’t you first tell us what do you think was the cause of the 9/11 attacks. You’re the biggest coward in these comments posing the same line of questioning then attacking the poster.
“Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.”