US prosecutors charge Minneapolis mosque arson suspect

By TRISHA AHMED
Associated Press/Report for America

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A man who is suspected of setting fires to mosques in Minneapolis has been indicted on federal charges of arson and damage to religious property. A grand jury indicted Jackie Rahm Little on Thursday for an April 24 fire at the Masjid Al-Rahma mosque. Authorities are also investigating him as a suspect in a fire that damaged the Masjid Omar Islamic Center inside a Somali shopping mall on April 23. He’s also a suspect in the January vandalism of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s office and of a Somali American police officer’s vehicle. Little pleaded not guilty Thursday to the federal charges. His attorney said he may seek an evaluation of his client’s mental competency.