My hometown of Minneapolis has been totally transformed by the arrival of tens of thousands of refugees from Somalis, one of whom now represents the city and a few suburbs in Congress.  Nobody there was asked if such a makeover was desired by the residents; State Department officials decided that the generous welfare benefits available in Minnesota were reason enough to send people whose native land is tropical to the coldest major city in the United States.

But now that the old 97%-plus Caucasian city has been made into a multicultural exemplar, the local establishment, including the newspapers and broadcasters, is ultra-protective of its prized diversity-endowing Somali community.

That might explain why the news of a horrific attack on people waiting for a light rail train at the University of Minnesota has been so slow to emerge.  A mob of "youths" — it now turns out they are juveniles, so their identities are being protected — believed to be of Somali extraction attacked innocent people waiting for a light rail train at the East Bank University of Minnesota station.  They were wielding either hammers or pipes.

East Bank Light Rail station (photo credit: Runner 1928).

The first reports came not from any established news outlets, but rather from people monitoring police scanners and posting the Facebook page of 2nd Pct Minneapolis Crime Watch & Information.  Those reports were, in turn, posted to Alpha News (hat tip: Glenn Reynolds, Intapundit), which writes:

A mob of eight to 10 males wielding hammers descended upon bystanders at the East Bank Light Rail station on Friday night injuring several, according to recorded police dispatch audio.

The incident was apparently reported to 911 just before 10 p.m. on Friday according to the audio and other social media police scanner reports. A 9:48 p.m. Facebook post on 2nd Precinct Minneapolis Crime Watch page said that University of Minnesota (U of M) police were requesting assistance from Minneapolis police (MPD) and Metro Transit police for "a group of 8-10 males chasing people with hammers" and that some people were injured. A Facebook post a minute later on Minneapolis Scanner page said that the three police departments were responding to "multiple [911] calls" about "10-12 Somali teen males armed with hammers chasing people," also with "several injuries reported." Both Facebook pages regularly post summaries of police scanner audio.

A person who claimed on social media to have been at the station when the incident occurred said that the group of males had "hammers and bars," and that they seemed to be "attacking anyone who looked like they had money or were white." The witness, who said he isn't white, said he didn't want to "[take] on a bunch of dudes with blunt objects," and that he "hurried an older white lady away" and they walked a few blocks to catch a bus.

A long and spirited discussion thread on 2nd Pct Minneapolis Crime Watch & Information provided lots of follow-up, including:

A representative from the MPD's 2nd Precinct, which covers the area where the incident occurred, responded that the case was being handled by the University of Minnesota (U of M) police, and said that the U of M police report indicated there were seven juveniles "causing a disturbance" on the light rail platform and that two of the juveniles "had pipes in their hands." The email stated that two juveniles were arrested and cited for disorderly conduct, fleeing police and false information to police, and they were transported to the Juvenile Detention Center. The email also said that one of the suspects was "known" to officers in Minneapolis' 1st Precinct, which covers downtown Minneapolis and the Cedar-Riverside area. The email said there was nothing mentioned [in the U of M police report] about injuries or victims. Case number UM 19-140183. 

Because the suspects are juveniles, no further information about their identities or cases will be made available.

Finally, yesterday, three days after the attack, the (formerly St. Paul, now Twin Cities) Pioneer Press daily newspaper covered the attack.

Two males who were carrying metal pipes were identified through video surveillance and witness descriptions, said Lacey Nygard, a University of Minnesota spokeswoman. Police issued them citations.

University of Minnesota Police were dispatched to the Green Line's East Bank station at 9:45 p.m. Friday.

Police asked for assistance from Metro Transit and Minneapolis police for a group of eight to 10 males "chasing people around with hammers," according to initial emergency radio traffic posted by Minneapolis Crime Watch & Information.

Officers found no one injured as a result of the incident, Nygard said.

Police cited two males for disorderly conduct and fleeing police on foot; one was also cited for giving police a fictitious name. A police report didn't specify their exact ages, but indicated that one is 12 or 13 and the other is 14 or 15.

Glenn Reynolds comments:

"Males." They were Somali teens, showing their gratitude to the nation that gave them refuge.

So far as I can determine, Rep. Ilhan Omar, the Somali refugee who represents Minneapolis in Congress and who also seems entirely ungrateful to the nation that paid for her to leave her hellhole homeland and granted her citizenship, has so far not commented on the incident.

Since the alleged perps are juveniles, we can expect this attack to disappear from the formal media, but perhaps bloggers and Facebook posters (so long as Mark Zuckerberg permits) will offer further details as they emerge.

Celebrate diversity, anyone?