Minnesota Islamic Center Wrote Letter of Support For Somali Convicted of Heinous Crime, ‘Deeply Good Man’

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A Somali immigrant convicted of raping a 12-year-old girl in Minnesota received strong support from an Islamic center and family members during sentencing — and the judge responded by handing down the minimum sentence allowed by law.

Key Facts:

  • Qalinle Ibrahim Dirie, 42, was convicted of raping a 12-year-old girl in St. Paul, Minnesota, in June.
  • He forced the child into his car, hit her over the head, and assaulted her before she escaped.
  • The Al-Ihsan Islamic Center sent a letter to the judge vouching for Dirie’s character.
  • Dirie’s family also called him a “deeply good man” in letters to the court.
  • Judge Michael E. Burns sentenced Dirie to the least amount of prison time allowed under state guidelines; he could be released in 2033.

The Rest of The Story:

Dirie targeted a 12-year-old girl who was playing in her backyard in June. After asking if her mother was home and hearing that she wasn’t, he left — only to return minutes later, abduct the child, strike her, and sexually assault her in his vehicle. She escaped and hid in her bathroom.

The police were initially unable to locate Dirie. But one month later, the victim’s family orchestrated a sting to lure him back to the home, where he was arrested.

Dirie, a Somali immigrant who came to the U.S. in 2006 after growing up in refugee camps, has lived in both Minnesota and North Dakota. He was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Ahead of sentencing, the Al-Ihsan Islamic Center submitted a letter to Judge Burns expressing “heartfelt support” for Dirie, insisting that the charges were a “deep shock” and did not reflect the man they knew. “His contributions may not make headlines, but to us, he has made a positive difference,” the letter read.

Despite the brutal nature of the crime, Judge Burns opted for the minimum sentence permissible under Minnesota sentencing guidelines.

Commentary:

This case should disturb every American. A man convicted of abducting and raping a 12-year-old girl received glowing letters of support — not just from family, but from a religious institution. That alone is shocking.

But even more alarming is that the court appeared to take those letters seriously enough to grant the lightest possible sentence.

What kind of moral compass calls a child rapist a “deeply good man”? That’s not mercy. That’s moral blindness. The people who vouched for this man are free to express their views, but the court has a responsibility to put victims first and to deliver justice without being swayed by community pleas that ignore the facts of the crime.

Judge Michael Burns failed in that responsibility. The crime was brutal, calculated, and inflicted lifelong trauma on a child. Yet the man who committed it may be walking free in less than a decade. That’s not justice — it’s leniency bordering on dereliction.

The court had one job: protect the public, especially children, from predators. Instead, it handed down a sentence that suggests sympathy for the criminal outweighed concern for the victim.

This kind of judicial decision only emboldens predators and weakens public trust in the justice system.

If a community — any community — rallies behind someone guilty of such a vile act, we have every right to question the values that guide that response.

But it’s the judge, an officer of the state, who bears the greatest blame. He had the power to send a message that this kind of evil will not be tolerated. Instead, he sent the opposite.

There’s nothing compassionate about failing to punish evil. It only invites more of it.

The Bottom Line:

A convicted child rapist received community backing and a minimum sentence, revealing deep cracks in our justice system.

When religious leaders and a judge prioritize the criminal’s character over the child victim’s trauma, public trust erodes.

This case isn’t just about one man’s crime — it’s about the system’s failure to deliver real justice and the dangerous precedent that sets for future offenders.

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