WASHINGTON — Federal authorities are conducting a criminal investigation into U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, focusing on paperwork from her family’s immigration decades ago alongside a separate inquiry into her personal financial disclosures, according to federal statements and news reports.
Homeland Security Investigations agents searched the Minnesota Democrat’s Washington residence on Oct. 12 while she was present with her husband, political consultant Tim Mynett. Federal personnel seized Omar’s passport, mobile phone, personal computers and notebooks, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Department of Justice confirmed the search in a statement, calling the operation part of an active federal criminal inquiry.
Immigration records and denaturalization inquiry
Since the search occurred, investigators have delivered subpoenas to multiple relatives of the lawmaker, Fox News reported. At least two family members, including her sister Sahra Noor, were among those subpoenaed in connection with the inquiry into her immigration records.
The federal probe centers on whether Omar’s age was accurately represented when she entered the country in 1995 and during her naturalization process, according to reporting by multiple outlets. Omar obtained citizenship automatically as a minor when her father became naturalized. Discrepancies regarding whether she was born in 1981 or 1982 have drawn attention, as reaching age 18 prior to her father’s naturalization would have barred her from automatic derivative status. The Wall Street Journal reported that the inquiry seeks to evaluate whether to pursue court action to revoke her naturalization.
Omar has maintained that she committed no wrongdoing and previously labeled the various inquiries into her background as “complete shams.” Mynett brushed off rumors that his wife had fled the country, telling Fox News Digital outside their residence that he had “no concerns” regarding the inquiry and noting she first arrived in the U.S. as a 12-year-old refugee.
Scrutiny over financial filings
Separately from the Homeland Security search, federal prosecutors are reviewing discrepancies in the couple’s federal financial statements. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro confirmed her office launched an investigation into the lawmaker’s disclosures following public attention on recent revisions.
The review follows changes submitted to Omar’s 2024 congressional financial disclosures. An initial filing listed stakes held by Mynett in a winery and an advisory firm as worth between $6 million and $30 million. Her office later filed an amendment dropping the listed value of those specific holdings to zero dollars, stating that the original paperwork mistakenly calculated total corporate valuation rather than Mynett’s specific share, while also omitting business liabilities.
Former President Donald Trump raised questions about the amended figures in posts on his Truth Social platform, accusing the lawmaker of irregularities. Officials noted the financial review remains distinct from the Homeland Security investigation into her immigration paperwork. What legal actions prosecutors might bring remains unclear as the investigations continue.
