A DNA-evidence report in the Omar probe is unconfirmed. Omar denies wrongdoing, and no charges have been filed.
A New York Post report that federal investigators have obtained DNA evidence in their probe of Rep. Ilhan Omar has not been confirmed by officials. No charges have been filed against the Minnesota Democrat, who denies wrongdoing.
The Associated Press reported last week, citing a person briefed on the probe, that federal agents searched Omar’s Washington home on Monday, Oct. 12, and seized her phone. The AP said authorities have issued more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas, including to some of her relatives. They were issued for a grand jury in Minnesota collecting evidence in a probe of potential fraud in Omar’s immigration paperwork. Democrats condemned the search, which took place about three weeks before the November midterms, and accused the administration of targeting Omar for political purposes. Omar called it an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement.
On Monday, the New York Post reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the probe, that investigators have used whistleblowers, government records and now DNA in an effort to substantiate long-standing allegations that Omar and possibly family members defrauded immigration authorities. They include the allegation that Omar’s 2009 marriage to Ahmed Nur Said Elmi was a marriage to her brother, meant to help him get a green card. One source told the Post the DNA is critical to establishing whether Elmi is her brother. It remains unclear whether the DNA was collected before or after the Oct. 12 search. Two other sources said the search, the DNA and other findings give prosecutors a basis to take an immigration-fraud conspiracy case before a grand jury. The Justice Department has not confirmed the Post’s account, and it has not been independently verified.
The Justice Department has not publicly released a DNA result, charged Omar or established that Elmi is her brother. Omar has repeatedly denied the allegation. In 2016, when it first drew public attention during her campaign for the Minnesota Legislature, she called the insinuations absurd and offensive. The allegation has circulated for years. Snopes concluded in 2019 that it lacked solid evidence.
The AP reported that Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has publicly pointed to possible crimes involving the family’s immigration paperwork, and that D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro has said several investigations are underway. It is not known whether prosecutors will present a case to the grand jury. Omar, first elected in 2018, represents Minnesota’s 5th District, including Minneapolis, and is seeking reelection in the Nov. 3 midterms.
Information for this report was provided by The Associated Press and the New York Post.