Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, said Wednesday that she will move out of her Washington, D.C., home, which federal agents searched last week. She said the attention from the raid has made her feel unsafe there 13.
It was her first interview since the search, given to MS NOW. Omar said she is "confident in the fact that I didn't do anything wrong." 1
What Omar says happened
Omar said agents from Homeland Security Investigations, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security, began banging on her doors around 6 a.m. on Oct. 12 3. She said they searched for four or five hours and took 17 items 13. The items included phones, notebooks, a Somali-language children's book and a vintage camera her husband had received as a gift 1.
Omar said agents asked her to sign a paper waiving certain rights she has as a member of Congress, and she declined 3. She said she could not reach her attorney until about an hour into the search 3. A source familiar with the matter told NBC News that she could have called an attorney or left at any time, and that she did call one 3.
From Channel GOPTrump says Ilhan Omar could go to jailDonald Trump · 140 plays · captioned, with the source named
She also said the agents were "intrusive but polite." 1
What investigators are looking at
A person briefed on the investigation told The Associated Press that federal authorities are looking into potential fraud in her family's immigration paperwork. The person said grand jury subpoenas have gone to some of her relatives 1. A person familiar with the case told NBC News that possible charges include conspiracy and making false statements in immigration paperwork 3.
Both sources spoke anonymously. No charges have been announced, and Omar denies wrongdoing. The Justice Department has shared few details beyond saying it is a criminal investigation 1.
A Justice Department spokesperson said officers and attorneys "carefully followed the protocol set forth in the search warrant." The spokesperson added that the department cannot comment on an ongoing investigation 3.
Obviously, I can’t continue to live there, because our address has been public,
Omar came to the U.S. with her family at age 12 after they obtained asylum. She became a citizen five years later, in 2000 1. She questioned the theory behind the case, saying it would be a stretch to charge someone over events that happened when she was a child 1.
It would be a huge undertaking to, I suppose, indict a 12-year-old for so cleverly conspiring to defraud immigration services to come to the United States.
Why the timing matters
Congressional Democrats sharply condemned the search and questioned its timing. The Justice Department has historically avoided overt investigative actions involving candidates in the final stretch before an election 1. Veterans of the department have also been alarmed by how close the search came to the Nov. 3 vote 3.
President Trump has repeatedly pushed for the prosecution of people he sees as political enemies, and Omar has been a frequent target 1. Omar rejected Trump's insistence that he had "nothing to do" with the case. She tied it to his 2019 remarks that she should be deported 3.
That matters because an investigation is not a finding of guilt. Prosecutors must still prove any charge in court. But the department's own unwritten rule against election-season moves is a guardrail, and voters are entitled to ask why it was set aside here.
What happens next
Omar is running for reelection in a deep blue district centered in Minneapolis and is expected to keep her seat 1. Whether prosecutors bring charges, and when, has not been announced. Control of the House and Senate will be decided on Nov. 3 1.
The Record
- Homeland Security Investigations agents searched Rep. Ilhan Omar's Washington home around 6 a.m. and took 17 items, she says 13.
- In her first interview since the search, Omar said she will move out of the home for safety reasons 13.
- Election Day: control of the House and Senate will be decided, and Omar is on the ballot in her Minneapolis-based district 1.
Sources
- PBS NewsHour / AP, “Rep. Ilhan Omar says she will move out of her Washington, DC, home after federal search” (2026-10-23). pbs.org/newshour/politics/rep-ilhan-omar-says-she-will-move-
- ABC News / AP, “Rep. Ilhan Omar says she will move from her Washington, DC, home after federal search” (2026-10-22). abcnews.com/US/wireStory/rep-ilhan-omar-move-washington-dc-h
- NBC News, “Rep. Ilhan Omar details federal search of her D.C. home, says she’ll have to move for safety reasons” (2026-10-22). nbcnews.com/politics/congress/ilhan-omar-details-federal-sea
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