Charges: Man Stabbed Mall Of America Victims With 8-Inch Blade
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A 20-year-old Minneapolis man is facing assault charges after allegedly stabbing two men in a fitting room at Macy's at the Mall of America Sunday night.
Mahad Abdiraham was charged with two counts of first-degree assault causing great bodily harm in connection with the incident.
According to the charges, a 19-year-old man who was with at family members at the Mall of America to shop came out of a dressing room to show his family pants he was thinking of buying. When the man returned to the dressing room, Abdiraham was near the room and appeared as if he wanted to get in.
The complaint states the victim went into the room, put his clothes back on and tried to come out. He exited to Abdiraham holding a large knife. The victim tried to pass him, and Abdiraham started slashing him. The victim was stabbed multiple times across his face, head and the back of his arms, with some of those cuts going to the bone.
The victim's family heard him screaming, and a 25-year-old family member went to his rescue with another family member, according to the complaint. The 25-year-old victim tried to grab the knife and suffered stab wounds to his hands and back. He needed 42 stitches to close the wounds on his back.
Authorities say the 19-year-old victim needed a blood transfusion and will have permanent scars on his head.
The complaint states the victims and witnesses subdued Abdiraham and took away the knife, which had an eight-inch blade.
Abdiraham was arrested last year for stabbing two workers with a pen at a psychiatric unit. He's expected to make his first court appearance on Wednesday.