The Trump administration has launched a wide-ranging federal investigation into Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar aimed at building a legal case to strip her of US citizenship and ultimately deport her, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials and sources familiar with the matter.
The multipronged inquiry is examining how Omar obtained US citizenship after arriving from Somalia as a child refugee, focusing on her paperwork and the actions of her late father, Nur Omar Mohamed, who brought the family to the United States from a Kenyan refugee camp in 1995.
At the centre of the investigation is whether her age was altered on citizenship documentation to show she was 17 rather than 18, which allowed her to derive citizenship automatically through her father in 2000.
Homeland Security Investigations reviewed similar allegations under the Biden administration but dropped them due to a lack of evidence of fraud.
The probe escalated sharply on Monday when federal agents executed a court-authorised search of Omar’s home in Washington, DC, just three weeks before midterm elections in which she is seeking re-election.
Investigators seized her mobile phone, personal computers, notebooks, and passport.
Authorities have also issued more than a dozen subpoenas, including to members of Omar’s family, demanding testimony before a federal grand jury in Minnesota.
Denaturalisation drive and political backlash
Omar strongly condemned the search and the broader investigation, calling the moves an “authoritarian attempt” to intimidate opponents.
“Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement,” Omar wrote on X platform, adding: “I will not be silenced.”
The case is part of the administration’s broader scrutiny of naturalised citizens’ citizenship status, with more than 200 civil lawsuits filed so far.
To strip citizenship, the Justice Department must file a federal lawsuit proving material fraud was committed.
Separately, US Attorney for Washington Jeanine Pirro confirmed her office is also investigating Omar’s financial disclosures.
