By Nolan D. McCaskill, Andrew Goudsward and Doina Chiacu
WASHINGTON, Oct 12 (Reuters) – US authorities conducted a predawn raid on Monday on the Washington-area home of Democratic US Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, an outspoken critic of Donald Trump who has been the target of political insults by the Republican president, as part of an ongoing investigation, the Justice Department said.
The raid followed a criminal fraud investigation into the Somali-born lawmaker’s immigration paperwork, which was filled out by her late father when she was a child, Fox News Digital reported, citing unidentified sources.
“Today in the Washington, DC area, Homeland Security Investigations executed a judicially authorized search warrant secured by the Department of Justice. This enforcement action is part of an ongoing federal investigation,” a Justice Department spokesperson said in an email.
A spokesperson for Omar did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The raid was carried out a little more than three weeks before the November 3 midterm elections, when Trump’s party will be trying to defend its narrow majorities in the US Congress. Omar, a prominent progressive who is running for reelection, represents a safe Democratic district. She won reelection in 2024 by a margin of 50 percentage points.
Justice Department policy bars federal prosecutors and agents from timing any action to affect the outcome of any election or benefiting a candidate or political party. The department has historically avoided taking investigative steps against political candidates within about 60 days of an election.
‘CREEPY OBSESSION’
Omar has faced political insults from Trump, who has cast the Somali American community as a threat to Minnesota in a burst of anti-Somali and anti-Muslim rhetoric. Omar has called Trump’s focus on her an “unhealthy and creepy obsession.”
Last week, Trump called Michigan’s Democratic nominee for US Senate — Abdul El-Sayed, who is Muslim — a “RADICAL Extremist” and “Terrorist Sympathizer” while offering support for El-Sayed’s Republican opponent, Mike Rogers.
Civil rights advocates have criticized Trump’s rhetoric toward minorities and immigrants, including when he previously called Somalis “garbage.”
Trump in February said that Omar and Democratic Representative Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, who is also Muslim, should be “institutionalized” and sent back to “where they came from.” Both lawmakers had criticized Trump during his State of the Union address as he touted his administration’s hard-line immigration crackdown and its immigration enforcement actions.
Omar has said she and her family have faced death threats, which she attributes to “hateful political rhetoric,” especially from Trump.
Last month, a Minnesota man who squirted vinegar on Omar was sentenced to one year and two months in prison after pleading guilty to assaulting a federal official. Anthony James Kazmierczak admitted to attacking Omar because he disagreed with her progressive political views.
(Reporting by Nolan D. McCaskill, Andrew Goudsward and Doina Chiacu; editing by Scott Malone, Michael Learmonth and Will Dunham)
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