MINNEAPOLIS — Police in Minneapolis on Saturday night arrested a man accused of setting fire to two mosques last week, authorities said.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota, Jackie Rahm Little, 36, was taken into custody in Mankato by the Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office. Federal agents took him into custody on Sunday. Little faces charges of second-degree arson.
Little was charged in connection with a fire at Mercy Islamic Center on April 24, KTSP-TV reported. According to Minneapolis police Chief Brian O’Hara, Little is also believed to be responsible for a fire that occurred on April 23 at Masjid Omar Islamic Center.
“Based on our investigation, there is no other known, active threat to our Muslim neighbors,” Minneapolis police Chief Brian O’Hara said in a statement on Sunday.
The complaint does not mention possible motives, the Star Tribune of Minneapolis reported.
In his statement on Sunday, O’Hara called the fires “an attempt to inflict terror onto our Muslim community.”
“Houses of worship should be safe places. Setting fire to a sacred facility, where families and children gather, is incredibly inhumane,” O’Hara said. “And this level of blatant hatred will not be tolerated in our great city.”
According to a criminal complaint from the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, surveillance video at Masjid Omar Islamic Center allegedly shows Little walking into the building with a bag that contained a plastic gas container, WCCO-TV reported.
Moments later, a staff member discovered a fire on the building’s top floor near some offices, according to the Star Tribune.
According to the criminal complaint, a melted plastic gas can was found where the fire started, the newspaper reported.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations chapter in Minnesota released the following statement about the arrest: “We welcome the arrest of the arson suspect and express gratitude to law enforcement for their swift action,” the Council on American-Islamic Relations chapter in Minnesota said in a statement, according to WCCO. “This arrest brings some relief to our community, which has been on edge for the past week. We hope to learn more about the suspect’s motivations and any potential accomplices who may have incited these attacks on our houses of worship.”
If convicted, Little faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison or a $20,000 fine, or both, KTSP reported.
“Let this be a lesson to anyone who seeks to cause harm through acts of hate,” O’Hara said in his statement. “We will find you. We will remove you from our streets. And we will ensure you are held accountable.”