Overview
- A man was taken into custody outside Lakeville Masjid after staff reported he was agitated and asking strange questions on Friday, May 22.
- Police say officers found a pocketknife, a box cutter and suspected illicit narcotics in the man’s pockets and that the items were never reported as displayed.
- While being questioned the man claimed he was a military officer and later a federal agent investigating child trafficking but could not produce any documentation to support those claims.
- Authorities say the suspect is known from prior mental-health–related contacts, was taken to Dakota County Jail and is being held on charges tied to the disturbance.
- The mosque’s imam linked the episode to growing fear driven by misinformation and anti-Muslim rhetoric, a concern that could affect congregation attendance and prompt scrutiny of police responses and local mental-health resources.