Federal agents search Ilhan Omar home in Washington criminal investigation
Federal agents searched Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington, D.C. home on Monday in an ongoing criminal investigation. The action comes three weeks before she stands for reelection in her congressional district in Minnesota.
Homeland Security investigators conducted the search pursuant to a federal search warrant. The Department of Justice said the case is a criminal investigation. Details remain limited.
The investigators focus on immigration issues. Several officials under President Donald Trump suggested that avenue. Vice President JD Vance suggested previously that Omar committed immigration fraud.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin cited an ongoing probe last month. He suggested agents examined potential fraud on immigration paperwork tied to her family.
“Something’s going to happen,” Mullin said.
Omar is not involved in several Minnesota fraud cases tied to Somali-run nonprofits. The Department of Justice filed many of those cases under former President Joe Biden. Omar arrived with her family under asylum in 1995. She became a naturalized citizen in 2000 at age 17.
Trump spoke about Omar at a Tennessee rally on Saturday. He called her native country one of “crime and squalor” and said Vance investigated her. Asked about the search, Trump deferred to the Justice Department.
“That has nothing to do with me,” Trump said. “I’ve always found her to be very crooked, personally.”
Trump previously pushed prosecutions against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries issued a joint statement with top congressional Democrats.
“For years, Donald Trump and far-right extremists have relentlessly targeted Congresswoman Omar with vile personal attacks and baseless accusations,” the statement said. “Now, less than 30 days until the midterm election, his violent mass deportation machine has descended upon the home of a duly elected Member of Congress and her family.”
Omar released a statement on X on Monday. She called the search an attempt to weaponize federal law enforcement.
“For ten years, Trump has targeted me with baseless lies and smear campaigns. This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation,” she said. “I will not be silenced.”
Omar runs for reelection on Nov. 3. Her district sits in Minneapolis. Her seat is deep blue.
Federal agents must secure a warrant approved by a judge before executing residential searches. Investigators gather records and property to establish potential violations of federal statutes.
The Trump administration acted despite longstanding Justice Department policy against legal moves close to elections.
