By Tom Weber Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN — The arrest in the Netherlands of a Somali man with a Rochester connection is “heart-breaking” for local Somalis, said a local Somali community leader.

“It gives a bad image to our community,” said Abdifattah Abdinur of Rochester. “As American Somalis, we don’t condone any kind of violence or extremism, whether it’s here or in our country or back home. It’s heartbreaking to hear about these kinds of people.”

The Somali man arrested in the Netherlands, Mohamud Said Omar, 43, is accused of financing Islamic terrorists. One of his brothers, Mohamed Osman, 51, lives in Rochester.

Another brother, Abdullahi Said Omar of Minneapolis, said Mohamud Said Omar was so poor he couldn’t afford to bring his new wife from Somalia to the U.S.

Mohamed Osman said Mohamud Said Omar worked low-paying jobs to make ends meet and didn’t have enough money to send to terrorists.

“He was homeless, he didn’t even have a place to stay,” said Mohamed Osman. Both brothers said they feel Omar is innocent.

Mohamud Said Omar was arrested Sunday at an asylum seeker’s center near Amsterdam and is being held at the request of American authorities.

The arrest is related to the FBI’s investigation into the disappearance of up to 20 young Somali men who left the Twin Cities over the last two years for Somalia, presumed to have joined the terror group al-Shabaab.

Dutch prosecutors said U.S. investigators suspect him of bankrolling the purchase of weapons for Islamic militants and helping other Somalis travel to Somalia in 2007 and 2008.

“These young guys who have been brainwashed — it’s so sad for the parents who did so much to bring their children here, away from the chaos in Somalia, to have to face this again,” Abdinur said.

“They wouldn’t have come here if they wanted their children to go back there. We feel bad for the parents who lost children, whether they were killed or arrested.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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