US President Donald Trump has said that Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, could face prison as well as deportation amid a federal immigration investigation into whether she misrepresented her age when she became a US citizen.
Asked at the Oval Office whether Omar could be deported if there is a problem with her age, Trump said: “Well, she could be. She could also go to jail.”
“You know, they keep talking about deportation. No, she could go to jail. This is just my opinion,” he said.
Federal agents searched Representative Omar’s house earlier this month in an immigration fraud probe targeting the congresswoman over possible false statements made on government documents and a potential conspiracy.
Homeland Security agents seized her phone, laptops, notebooks, and passport.
Investigators are examining whether Omar or her late father lied about her age when she obtained citizenship in 2000.
Omar denied the accusations, saying she came to the US at age 12 in 1995 and gained citizenship at 17.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration is seeking to revoke her citizenship and eventually deport her.
“Politically motivated”
Federal investigators questioned Omar’s sister, Sahra Noor, after searching Omar’s Washington, DS home as part of an immigration fraud probe.
Omar condemned the raid as politically motivated.
“Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponise federal law enforcement,” she wrote on X. “This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation.”
Omar, the US’ first Somali American member of Congress, has served in the US House of Representatives since 2019.
To strip citizenship, the Justice Department must file a federal lawsuit proving material fraud.
Separately, US Attorney for Washington Jeanine Pirro confirmed her office is also investigating Omar's financial disclosures.
