Man charged with threatening to shoot, blow up Walgreens

Published 10:11 am Wednesday, March 30, 2016

MINNEAPOLIS — A Minnesota man accused of lying to the FBI about when he last contacted the Islamic State group was charged Tuesday in state court after allegedly threatening to “shoot up” a Walgreens.

Abdul Raheem Habil Ali-Skelton, 23, faces three felony counts of making terroristic threats in connection with Sunday’s incident at the store in Brooklyn Park, a Minneapolis suburb.

According to the complaint, Ali-Skelton went into the store early Sunday and accused a customer of having a relationship with his girlfriend. The complaint said Ali-Skelton then advanced on the man multiple times and threatened to hit him with a bottle.

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A store manager intervened and told the two to leave. Ali-Skelton said he had a gun and would “shoot up the place,” according to the complaint. He also said he was part of a terrorist organization and that he would “blow up” the store, the complaint said.

Ali-Skelton was in custody Tuesday and ordered held on $30,000 bail. Court records do not list an attorney to comment on the new charges.

Ali-Skelton is expected to plead guilty in U.S. District Court next month to one count of making a false statement to FBI agents. In that case, federal prosecutors say Ali-Skelton told the FBI last July that his last contact with Syrian-based members of the Islamic State group was in May or early June 2015. But prosecutors say Ali-Skelton knew he had communicated with members of the group as recently as last July 4.