ICE Says Releasing Ilhan Omar Probe Documents Could Disrupt Enforcement Proceedings

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has refused to release records regarding an immigration fraud investigation into Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), formally citing a federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemption for ongoing "enforcement proceedings.

ICE invoked FOIA Exemption 7(A), which protects records compiled for law enforcement purposes when disclosure could reasonably be expected to interfere with active enforcement proceedings.

The records requested are tied to long-standing, baseless allegations by President Donald Trump and his supporters that the congresswoman engaged in marriage fraud to assist a relative in staying in the United States.

While Omar, 43, has consistently denied these allegations and noted court records have never substantiated them, the agency's official invocation of an active enforcement exemption confirms the inquiry remains under active review by federal authorities.

She has repeatedly dismissed the marriage fraud allegations as "disgusting lies" and has consistently called the investigations a "politically motivated" smear campaign targeting her identity.

In an extended statement addressing her marital history, Omar stated, "Insinuations that Ahmed Nur Said Elmi is my brother are absurd and offensive."

Elmi was her second husband, whom she legally married in 2009 and divorced in 2017.

Omar’s current husband is Tim Mynett, whom she married in March 2020. Before marrying Mynett, she was wed to Ahmed Hirsi, whom she divorced in late 2019. They share three children.

Speaking to reporters regarding the persistent rumors and the focus on her background, she noted, "The claims about my family are disgusting lies and... I'm being attacked because I'm Muslim.”

This development occurs amidst severe friction between Omar and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) / ICE.

Omar recently sent a formal oversight letter demanding answers after an undercover Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent was found stationed outside her public town hall meeting in Richfield, Minn. Omar questioned whether the Trump administration was using the agency to unlawfully "surveil political opponents.”

Concurrently, Minnesota state lawmakers have sought to subpoena Omar's separate communication records regarding an investigation into state-level funding fraud linked to the "Feeding Our Future" program.

Responding directly to accusations that she or her office were connected to the scheme, Omar stated to Fox News Digital, "Any claim that I had knowledge of this scheme is flat-out false."

Condemning the individuals who stole the federal child nutrition funding, she declared, "Stealing millions of dollars under the guise of feeding hungry children to bankroll lavish lifestyles and extravagant expenses is reprehensible."

Pointing out her early demands for federal oversight after the news originally broke, Omar remarked, "The moment this fraud came to light, I immediately sent a letter to the USDA Secretary demanding answers and accountability."

As conservative organizations and political opponents have continued pushing federal agencies to review her files, Omar has pushed back against her critics, calling the ongoing scrutiny the work of “sick Republicans.”