Police: Man Arrested In St. Cloud Islamic Center Vandalism
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A 29-year-old man was arrested early Thursday morning and is accused of vandalism at the Islamic Center of St. Cloud, according to police.
Authorities received a report at about 4:48 a.m. of vandalism in progress at the Islamic Center of St. Cloud, located on the 300 block of 5th Avenue South. When officers arrived, they saw the window to the front door of the building had been broken out and a vehicle parked next to the center had a broken window.
Officers were told that several people were inside the center praying at the time of the incident and followed the suspect. At the same time, another group of witnesses tracked the suspect down and brought him back to the scene. The suspect was identified as Abdourahamane Diallo of St. Cloud.
Police learned through an investigation that witnesses chased Diallo from the center to the end of the block and caught him. Witnesses said Diallo broke the windows after spraying the side of the center with beer. Officers learned that the windows had been broken out with a basketball-size plaster ball/artwork that he made himself and obtained from his residence.
Police said Diallo also left a small bag of garbage outside the door of the church, and an empty Corona bottle was found at the scene. Nobody was hurt in the incident, and authorities said Diallo appeared to be intoxicated.
Diallo was taken to the Stearns County Jail, where he admitted to the vandalism of the Islamic Center of St. Cloud. He told police he attended the center regularly for prayer and was frustrated with personal issues, including losing an expensive phone, and damaged the center as a result.
Diallo also said he damaged a friend's vehicle earlier in the night after a dispute over the phone, police said. Diallo broke the rear view mirrors on the car.
He has been booked in the Stearns County Jail on suspicion of felony criminal damage to property.