‘Clock Boy’ Ahmed Mohamed Is Reportedly Coming Back To Texas

Do you remember the Ahmed Mohamed (“Clock Boy”) scandal last year? If not, here’s a refresher. The Muslim teen from Texas was suspended (and even did a stint in police custody and juvenile detention) for bringing a homemade clock to school. The school alleged that they thought the Muslim teen, soon dubbed “Clock Boy” by the media, had brought a bomb to class and were acting out of concern for other students. According to Ahmed Mohamed, his family, his attorney, and the Muslim community, the teen was profiled for his religious beliefs and treated unfairly.

His case got so much attention that he was even invited to the White House to meet President Barack Obama.

@raztweets He didn't build a clock. He took apart a clock and brought it into school for no reason. Now so 'scarred' from meeting obama.

— Jake (@FakeEStott) November 24, 2015

After the being in the national media spotlight and the subject of unending attention (a lot of it, unfortunately, very negative), Ahmed Mohamed escaped the public scrutiny along with his family. As the Dallas News reports, “Clock Boy” Ahmed Mohamed has spent the last year living in Qatar with his family. Reportedly, the teen finished high school on the other side of the world on a scholarship funded by that country’s royal family.

@EBONYMag @GetJETmag @ShanTell_em for what? The teacher acted in due diligence for the safety of other students. He got national press.

— February 1 (@19walt70) November 24, 2015

Now, though, Ahmed Mohamed’s self-imposed exile is coming to an end, at least temporarily. According to multiple reports, he has decided to return to Irving, Texas, where the whole scandal went down, as early as Monday evening. The reason for the return? According to a Fox 4 News report, “Clock Boy” and the rest of his nuclear family are coming back to Irving because they miss their family in North Texas.

“Ahmed and his family have missed his grandmother, his aunts, uncles, cousins and friends here in Irving and across North Texas very much. Ahmed and his nuclear family miss America and their whole family here in America very much.”

Ahmed Mohamed was arrested in September 2015 due to a misunderstanding at Irving MacArthur High School. It was then that school faculty believed that the Muslim teen had brought a bomb to school. The bomb in question turned out to be a homemade digital clock.

The incident made not just national but international headlines, with many people calling foul. The newly-dubbed “Clock Boy” was called a victim of discrimination by some, while others thought that the school had made the right call by having the then-14-year-old arrested.

Ahmed Mohamed, clock boy, seeks $15M for arrest at #Texas school https://t.co/npvg7vax9i #AhmedMohamed pic.twitter.com/ux7bpcp4Cc

— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) November 23, 2015

In the aftermath of the famous clock incident, Ahmed Mohamed not only got to visit the White House and meet the POTUS, he was invited to participate in Google’s national science fair and was even listed among Time Magazine’s “Most Influential Teens of 2015” list. While “Clock Boy” Ahmed Mohamed remained in the United States, he and his family continued to be the objects of public scrutiny. It was because of this, and the social stigma the family found itself facing in super-conservative and largely-Christian Irving, Texas, that he and his immediate family ended up heading to Qatar.

At the time of the “Clock Boy” incident, the Mohamed family threatened to sue both the City of Irving and the Irving school district for damages they alleged stemmed from Ahmed’s arrest. The family wanted compensation in the amount of $15 million and an apology, but a lawsuit was never filed before they left the area.

Aldean Mohamed, uncle of Ahmed, says that “Clock Boy” will be coming to Dallas for an “extended visit.” About a month ago, Aldean also told the media that Ahmed Mohamed’s family still plans to file their threatened lawsuit over the “bomb hoax” incident.

When the “Clock Boy” situation unfolded, the mayor of Irving said that she stood behind her police department and their arrest of Mohamed. Ultimately, the local police department completely dropped the charges against Ahmed Mohamed, now known as “Clock Boy,” because they determined that the device he brought to schools wasn’t actually a hoax bomb and that he’d meant no harm.

[Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images]