Eden Prairie townhome arsonist hit with 15 year prison sentence
Smoke plume from Eden Prairie twin home fire
A smoke plume was seen from an Eden Prairie twin home fire on Friday afternoon. Officials say an infant was hospitalized but did not share further details. The video clip is looped.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A man who set a fire at an Eden Prairie townhome with children inside that left a baby fighting for her life has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for the crime.
2024 Eden Prairie fire
The backstory:
On May 31, 2024, Abdirahman Abdi Abdullahi set fire to an Eden Prairie town home on Cardiff Lane, a short side street near the intersection of Flying Cloud Drive and Prairie Center Drive.
Inside the town home at the time were five people, another man and four children – including a nine-month-old baby. The man and three of the children were able to escape, but the baby was still inside the burning home when firefighters arrived.
Crews pulled the baby from the burning structure but found the child had stopped breathing. Firefighters worked to revive the child before the infant was rushed to the hospital.
The fire continued to burn as crews worked to battle the flames, destroying the town home, causing the garage roof to collapse, and damaging nearby homes.
A photo included in court documents showing the massive Eden Prairie townhome fire. (Supplied)
The motive
Dig deeper:
Surveillance footage showed Abdullahi carrying a red gas can toward the residence just before the fire began. He was later seen returning to his vehicle with the gas can.
The investigation revealed that the fire was started by dousing a bag of clothes with gasoline at the entrance of the home.
Prosecutors said Abdullahi targeted his former romantic partner, who was not home at the time of the fire. The infant he endangered is her daughter.
Abdullahi had a history of domestic violence and was on probation for violating a restraining order involving the victim. In the days before the fire, he threatened to kill his ex-partner and sent her a text message saying, "when I see you I'm smoke u".
Big picture view:
Investigators identified Abdullahi using surveillance video and a rental car agreement for a vehicle parked nearby. When arrested, he was wearing clothing that matched what was seen on video.
The court described Abdullahi's actions as "calculated, cold," and found he intended to cause his ex-partner's death, applying sentencing guidelines for attempted murder.
Abdullahi sentenced
Local perspective:
Abdullahi was charged with and pleaded guilty to arson. Prosecutors initially asked for a 17.5-year sentence, arguing Abdullahi was attempting to kill his ex, given his history of abuse.
Abdullahi argued for only seven years in prison, stating he suffered from mental health issues and abuse as a child. Abdullahi also claimed he tracked his ex's location to ensure she wasn't home before starting the fire. In court documents, he claimed he only wanted to burn clothes in front of her home—not burn down her entire home.
On Monday, a judge handed down a 15-year prison sentence to Abdullahi.