Plea hearings set for 2 of 3 men accused in Bloomington mosque bombing

Moultrie County Sheriff deputies transport Michael McWhorter.
Moultrie County Sheriff deputies transport Michael McWhorter to the Federal Courthouse in Urbana, Ill., on March 21, 2018.
Rick Danzl | The News-Gazette via AP 2018

Two of three militia members accused of bombing a Minnesota mosque have hearings scheduled next week in federal court to change their pleas.

Online court records show hearings for Michael McWhorter and Joe Morris on Jan. 24. The two men, along with Michael Hari, are accused of driving from Clarence, Illinois, in August 2017 and attacking Dar al-Farooq Islamic Center. McWhorter allegedly said the men did it to scare Muslims from the country.

McWhorter and Morris have pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges. A change of plea hearing typically means that the defendants plan to enter a guilty plea before the court.

McWhorter's and Morris' cases have been combined in Minnesota, while Hari's cases remain separate.

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