Federal officers carry out search at Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s DC-area home

By Michael Williams, CNN

(CNN) — Federal officers early on Monday executed a search warrant at the DC-area home of Rep. Ilhan Omar, the Minnesota congresswoman who has been the persistent target of ire from President Donald Trump’s administration, according to a Justice Department spokesperson and a source familiar with the matter.

The Department of Justice said in a statement on Monday that investigators from Homeland Security Investigations, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security that handles criminal investigations, “executed a judicially authorized search warrant secured by the Department of Justice.”

“This enforcement action is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation,” a DOJ spokesperson said.

The statement did not indicate what the investigation entailed. CNN has reached out to DHS and Omar for comment.

Omar is currently running for reelection and the search warrant was executed only weeks before the midterms.

Department policy also bars prosecutors and investigative agents from selecting timing in an investigation so that it would influence an election.

The Department also has special policies requiring additional approvals within the Justice Department when investigations involve a member of Congress, and the Constitution provides additional protections for members of Congress around their papers and communications that relate to their legislative work.

While authorities have not said what prompted the search, administration officials have previously indicated that she was facing an investigation.

White House Border Czar Tom Homan said on Fox News last month that “things are going on” in relation to Omar, before adding: “But I can’t give the specifics of what’s happening.”

Speaking to Fox on Monday morning, Homan confirmed the search warrant was executed, but provided no other information.

“The specifics of the investigation, I think I need to turn that over to Todd Blanche or Markwayne Mullin,” he said. “I don’t want to get ahead of them commenting on an ongoing investigation.”

Omar was born in Somalia and grew up at the peak of that country’s civil war. She fled to the US as a teenager and later became a US citizen. She was first elected to Congress in 2018 and became part of the “Squad,” a group of female women of color congresswomen known for pushing for progressive causes.

Since joining Congress, she has been the target of racist vitriol, including from Trump, who called Omar “garbage” last year and said Somalis should “go back to where they came from.”

Her home district in Minnesota was the target of an expansive immigration-enforcement campaign earlier this year that led to violent clashes between protesters and immigration authorities and the fatal shootings of two US citizens who were protesting the administration’s immigration surge.

Top administration officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Mullin, have accused Omar of marrying her brother to help bring him into the United States. They have provided no proof of this claim.

Homan said on Fox News last month, referencing Omar, that if “someone committed immigration violation, someone committed marriage fraud, or anything like that, regardless if they’re a congressman or not, no one’s above the law.”

Asked specifically whether that means there was an open investigation into Omar, Homan responded: “I’m confirming that ICE is — yeah, like I said months ago, that is something that’s been reported and needs to be looked at.”

It is unusual for the Justice Department to take such an aggressive investigative step toward a person running for office so close to an election. Voting is well underway in Minnesota, with more than 127,000 people having already voted, according to data from the secretary of state.

In prior years, the department has treaded cautiously for the 60-day period before an election day to not make searches or levy charges that would disadvantage a candidate. Department policy also bars prosecutors and investigative agents from selecting timing in an investigation so that it would influence an election.

The Justice Department also has special policies requiring additional approvals when investigations involve a member of Congress, and the Constitution provides additional protections for members around papers and communications that relate to their legislative work.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN’s Katelyn Polantz, Kristen Holmes and Annie Grayer contributed to this report.

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