Agoura Hills Man Planned 'Columbine-Type' Attack on L.A. Mosque

AGOURA HILLS, CA — An Agoura Hills Man was arrested and accused of making criminal threats against the Islamic Center of Southern California, the Los Angeles Police Department announced Tuesday.

Mark Feigin, 40, was arrested at his home on Oct. 19, Cmdr. Horace Frank, of the Counter Terrorism and Special Operations Bureau, said at a news conference at the LAPD headquarters downtown. He was accused of making two calls to the Islamic Center in September, threatening to kill local Muslims and violence against the ICSC.

Investigators were able to trace the calls made on Sept. 19 and 20 to Feigin, but Frank did not disclose how police were able to link them to Feigin, citing an ongoing investigation.

Police also found a stash of weapons, including riffles, modified ammunition magazines and ammunition inside Feigin's home, Frank said. Some of the weapons were registered to the suspect, but Frank did not say if the other weapons were unregistered or registered to another person. He only said that all the weapons were found inside the suspect's home.

At the news conference, police also displayed some threatening tweets made against the ICSC and Frank said they were part of the investigation but would not confirm if Feigin was the person behind the tweets.

Looking at some of the weapons and tweets displayed at the news conference, ICSC spokesman Omar Ricci said the first thing that popped into his mind was a "Columbine-type event."

"He could have easily barged in and hurt some of our members," Ricci said. "The worst came to mind and that's why we have added additional security to the Islamic Center."

Frank said while the department respects every citizen's right to free speech, but when that speech infringes on the safety of others, the department has a duty to act.

"We're here to ensure the laws are enforced," he said.

Feigin is out on a $77,500 bond and will be arraigned on Nov. 10. The California Attorney General will be prosecuting the case instead of the local district attorney because of the nature of the case, Frank said.

Photo courtesy of the LAPD