Two juveniles charged in assault on imam in Bloomington
Hennepin County prosecutors on Friday charged two boys — ages 13 and 16 — in connection with an assault on an imam outside a Bloomington mosque last week.
Imam Mohamed Mukhtar suffered two fractures in his left shoulder after the assailants kicked and hit him as he walked from his home to the Dar al Farooq Islamic Center.
The older suspect is charged with aiding and abetting third-degree assault. However prosecutors are prohibited from saying what charges the younger boy faces.
Police say they do not believe bias or hate were a motive.
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The attack came three years and a day after members of a far-right Illinois milita firebombed the building, nearly killing executive director Mohamed Omar.
Omar said this latest incident left members shaken, and many did not go to Friday prayers last week.
"It is affecting our well being, and it is affecting our community's health. This is a health crisis for our community," he said.
Gov. Tim Walz visited the mosque Friday afternoon along with other elected officials and religious leaders including Rabbi Jill Crimmings of the Bet Shalom Congregation and Twin Cities Roman Catholic Archbishop Bernard Hebda.
Watch a recording of a press conference that followed the visit here.