Bloomington mosque bombed in August now burglarized

The Bloomington mosque that was bombed this summer was burglarized early Friday morning.

Police responded to Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center after a report of an overnight burglary, according to Deputy Chief Mike Hartley. They found that the building had been entered by force and that someone had gone through offices, he said.

Police were investigating, and detectives and administrators at the center were working together to determine what was stolen, he said.

The Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) on Friday asked that anyone with information about the burglary call Bloomington police.

CAIR said security cameras at the mosque showed two men wearing masks and gloves entering the building between 2 and 3 a.m. The video shows the men walking around the mosque breaking windows and entering offices.

Hartley said there was no evidence that the burglary was related to the bombing in August. Mosque leaders recently released videos of the explosion in hopes of generating tips that could lead to an arrest.

The FBI has announced a $30,000 reward for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of suspects in the bombing. No one was injured in what Gov. Mark Dayton at the time called an "act of terrorism."

There were no security cameras outside the Islamic Center at the time of the explosion, making the investigation more difficult for authorities. An FBI spokesman said this month that the case remains the top priority of the bureau's Minneapolis office and that agents are "following every available lead."

Anyone with information about the burglary should contact Bloomington police at 952-563-4900.

David Chanen • 612-673-4465