Men Caught With Machineguns Amid Twin Cities Graduation Shootings: Feds

MINNEAPOLIS — Two men have been federally charged with unlawfully possessing machineguns following a string of shootings at high school graduation ceremonies in the Twin Cities metro, authorities announced.

Hamza Abdirashiid Said, 20, and Amiir Mawlid Ali, 18, were charged this week, according to Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.

Both men made their initial appearances in U.S. District Court on Tuesday before Magistrate Judge John F. Docherty. They remain in custody pending detention hearings.

Their arrests come amid a disturbing pattern of violence at metro-area graduation ceremonies, culminating in a shooting outside Burnsville High School’s graduation earlier this month.

"High school graduation ceremonies are a rite of passage. A time for friends and family to come together to celebrate one of life’s major milestones. To bring machineguns and violence to such a ceremony is immoral and shameful," said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.

"On behalf of all Minnesotans, I want to express a sense of moral outrage at these crimes and assure the public that the perpetrators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

Wayzata Graduation Shooting — May 30

According to federal charging documents, Said was arrested on May 30 after shots were fired around 8 p.m. outside Mariucci Arena on the University of Minnesota campus, where Wayzata High School was holding its graduation ceremony.

University of Minnesota Police arrived to find two attendees suffering gunshot wounds in what officers described as a chaotic scene. Witness statements and surveillance footage led police to identify Said as the shooter.

Officers recovered a Glock 9mm handgun equipped with a high-capacity magazine and a machinegun conversion device known as a "switch," which illegally converts semiautomatic handguns into fully automatic weapons.

Said was charged federally with unlawful possession of a machinegun.

Edina Graduation Traffic Stop — June 3

Three days later, on June 3, Minneapolis police stopped a vehicle that ran a stop sign and sped through an intersection. Officers noted the vehicle had heavily tinted windows that prevented them from seeing inside.

One of the occupants was identified as Amiir Ali, a known gang associate tied to recent shootings and believed to carry firearms, authorities said. The group told officers they were heading to the Edina High School graduation, also being held on the University of Minnesota campus.

Given the shooting just days earlier at the Wayzata graduation, officers conducted a search and found a Glock 10mm with a 33-round extended magazine and a switch under Ali’s seat.

Ali was arrested that day and released on June 5, jail records show.

Burnsville Graduation Shooting — June 6

Ali was arrested again on June 6, after a shooting near Burnsville High School’s graduation ceremony. Authorities say he was located by officers responding to the incident and taken into custody.

In recorded jail calls, Ali reportedly said that once released, he would need a new "button," a slang term for a machinegun conversion switch.

Federal prosecutors charged Ali with unlawful possession of a machinegun based on the June 3 traffic stop and the June 6 arrest.

Separate State Charges

Meanwhile, two other 18-year-olds were charged Monday in Dakota County District Court in connection with the Burnsville graduation shooting.

• Abdikani Mukhtar Abdiwahab, of Bloomington, was charged with two counts of drive-by shooting and two counts of aiding an offender after the fact.
• Abdulahi Jama Ali, of Shakopee, was charged with two counts of drive-by shooting and one count of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon.

Read more: 'Ksoe, You Missed': Teens Charged After Shooting During Burnsville High School Graduation

Editor's note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the date of Ali's initial arrest.