A 23-year-old man faces federal charges of setting an Eden Prairie home on fire, injuring his 9-month-old son while apparently targeting the child's mother.
The infant — one of four children in the house at the time of the May 31 blaze — was rescued by firefighters, who came upon the baby on the floor of the home's second level, according to a criminal complaint. The baby was not breathing at the time but resumed breathing in an ambulance shortly afterward.
The home that was set ablaze, in the 8500 block of Cardiff Lane, was significantly damaged and will be demolished. The other three children and an adult escaped unharmed.
Abdirahman Abdi Abdullahi was charged with one count of arson, causing injury to a minor. An attorney representing him did not immediately return a request for comment.
At the time of the fire, Abdullahi was on probation for violating a restraining order that barred him from contacting the mother of his child, according to court records. Three days earlier, Abdullahi sent the mother a text message that said, "when I see u I'm smoke u."
Investigators turned up surveillance footage that shows Abdullahi buying a gas can at a nearby gas station, driving a red Jeep Cherokee to the area of the home and, after parking, walking in the direction of the home with the gas can, the complaint said. Cellphone tower records also place Abdullahi's phone near the home in the minutes leading up to the fire.
Through text messages and Cash App activity, investigators allege that Abdullahi paid a man to rent the Jeep Cherokee for him.
Abdullahi was arrested the day of the fire and remains in custody. Investigators found clothing that matched that worn by the man seen in surveillance videos with the gas can, the complaint said.
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