Minnesota congresswoman describes pre-dawn search of her Washington home, denies immigration fraud claims and calls operation part of political pressure campaign.
US Representative Ilhan Omar has said federal agents seized 17 items from her Washington, DC home during a pre-dawn raid last week that she believes was designed to intimidate her and her family.
In her first interview since the October 12 operation, the Minnesota Democrat told MS NOW host Chris Hayes that about 10 to 15 Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents pounded on her door at 6am after she had been asleep for only a few hours following travel. The search lasted four to five hours as agents went room by room through the residence.
“You don’t show up to somebody’s house that early in the morning unless you’re trying to freak them out,” Omar said. “And you know it obviously did freak all of us out.”
According to Omar, the agents took 17 items, including several phones-her own, an older travel phone, and her youngest daughter’s first phone-as well as her husband’s notebooks, a vintage camera he had received from his uncle, and a Somali phrase book for children that he was using to learn the language. She described the haul as “a bizarre, bizarre thing,” noting that many of the items were old phones and notebooks.
Ilhan Omar Denies Wrongdoing After FBI-Authorised Search:
The Justice Department confirmed that HSI executed a judicially authorised search warrant as part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation. Sources familiar with the probe have said it relates to alleged immigration fraud involving paperwork completed by Omar’s late father when she was a child. Omar, who was born in Somalia and is a naturalised US citizen, has firmly denied any wrongdoing.
“I have a legal right to be a member of Congress,” she said, rejecting suggestions of fraud. She characterised the raid as the latest escalation in what she called a long-running campaign of political intimidation by President Donald Trump and his administration.
Omar noted that agents mostly conducted themselves professionally during the search but said she was not able to contact her attorney until about an hour after they arrived. She has also indicated that the attention generated by the raid has made her feel unsafe in the home and that she will need to move.
Ilhan Omar Calls Federal Raid a Political Pressure Tactic:
The congresswoman, one of the most prominent Somali-American and Muslim members of Congress, has been a frequent target of criticism from Trump, who has repeatedly questioned her loyalty and background. Democrats have condemned the raid as an abuse of power and an attempt to weaponise federal law enforcement against a political opponent, especially in the lead-up to midterm elections.
Omar’s attorneys have previously described the search as “neither justified nor lawful” and requested the return of seized items along with the preservation of any recordings made during the operation. The Justice Department has rejected those characterisations.
Omar maintained that the ultimate goal of the pressure appears to be to drive her from public life. “Obviously, they’d like to see me locked up, deported and all of those things. But I think the bigger satisfaction for them would be for me to be like, ‘I’m tired of all of you and I’m going to leave,” she said. The investigation continues, and no charges have been filed.