(CNN) Dahir A. Adan, 22 , has been identified as the man who stabbed nine people at a Minnesota mall Saturday before being shot dead by an off-duty police officer, according to two Somali community leaders in Minnesota who are in direct contact with the Adan's family. Federal law enforcement sources also confirmed Adan's name to CNN.
On Saturday night, Lul Hersi stood outside the Crossroads Mall in St. Cloud, Minnesota, waiting to find out whether her son was among the nine people stabbed by a man who an ISIS-linked news agency praised as a "soldier of the Islamic state."
Fear washed over the Somali-American mother, not just for her son's well being, but also because of the potential backlash that might follow against her community.
Advertisement - story continues below
