By Alanna Durkin Richer
Federal agents on Monday searched the home of Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, a frequent target of Trump administration criticism, as part of a criminal investigation, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The search was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations agents, said the people, who were not authorized to publicly discuss an ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity. More details about the investigation were not immediately clear, though Vice President JD Vance has in the past accused Omar of committing immigration fraud — an allegation she has denied — and has said he and a top White House official were trying to figure out how to investigate the Minnesota congresswoman.
An email seeking comment was sent Monday to a representative for Omar.
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The Justice Department said in a statement Monday that HSI agents executed a judicially authorized search warrant secured by the department in the Washington, D.C., area but provided no other details. The street was blocked off Monday morning as HSI agents remained near the home.
“This enforcement action is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation,” the department said.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, of which Homeland Security Investigations is part, referred questions about the search to the Justice Department.
Omar represents Minnesota’s 5th District, including Minneapolis. She was first elected to the House in 2018 and has been a member of what’s called The Squad of female lawmakers known for their progressive views and pointed opposition to President Donald Trump, a Republican.
Republicans have raised questions about Omar’s past since before she was even elected, including asserting that she had married her brother and committed immigration fraud. Omar has broadly denied the allegations as “disgusting lies.”
“It certainly seems like something fishy is there, but everybody’s entitled to equal justice under the laws,” Vance told reporters in May. “So we’re going to investigate it. We’re going to take a look at it. If we think there’s a crime, we’re going to prosecute that crime.”
In a separate interview with conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, Vance said without offering evidence that “we actually think that Ilhan Omar definitely committed immigration fraud against the United States of America.”
He said that he and deputy White House chief of staff Stephen Miller had been discussing it and “trying to look at what the remedies are.”
“That’s the thing that we’re trying to figure out,” he said. “What are the legal remedies now that we know that she’s committed immigration fraud. How do you go after her? How do you investigate her? How do you actually do the thing? How do you build the case necessary to get some, some, some justice for the American people?”
Omar’s office in March dismissed Vance’s claims as fabricated and defamatory.
“This is rich coming from someone who literally said they were willing to ‘create stories’ to redirect the media,” Omar’s chief of staff, Connor McNutt, said in a statement.
“This is a ridiculous lie and desperate attempt to distract from the pedophile protection party’s unpopular war of choice, increasing gas prices, and rapidly dropping polling numbers,” McNutt said of the vice president’s allegations and comments.
Associated Press writers Eric Tucker, Michelle L. Price and River Zhang in Washington, Kathy McCormack in Concord, N.H., Mike Catalini in Morrisville, Pa., and Meg Kinnard in Columbia, S.C., contributed.
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