Rep. Ilhan Omar Says ICE Allegedly Pulled Over Her Son, Released Him After He Showed Proof Of Citizenship
Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar told CBS WCCO on Sunday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested her son Saturday night but allowed him to leave after he showed proof of citizenship.
Tensions in Minnesota have increased as media attention has focused on Somali immigrants in the state following the uncovering of a massive welfare fraud scandal in December. Speaking on “WCCO Sunday Morning” with Esme Murphy, Omar accused ICE of arresting her 20-year-old son after he stopped at Target, before releasing him once he presented his passport.
“But yesterday, after stopping at a Target, he was stopped by ICE agents and once he was able to show his passport, they let him go,” Omar said.
Murphy then asked Omar if his son had entered Target with his passport on Saturday night, to which the Democratic lawmaker said he still had it with him. (RELATED: Watch How Minneapolis Mayor Panders to Somalis in the Worst Way During Fraud Scandal)
“In case he gets arrested?” » asked Murphy.
“Yes,” Omar replied.
ICE did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment before publication.
WATCH:
Murphy also asked Omar, before her claims, about her fears of ICE raids in Minneapolis, as the congresswoman said she was concerned about the restaurant her son frequents.
“It was last Friday and, you know, usually my son goes to Friday prayers with his friends and then they all go eat at their favorite restaurant in Cedar Riverside. I knew I had seen videos earlier in the day from Rep. Mahmoud Noor and others showing that ICE agents were in Cedar,” Omar said. “So I kept calling my son to see if he was OK, if there had been any issues with him and he wasn’t answering.”
“Finally that evening I got a chance to talk to him and I had to remind him how worried I am because all of these areas that they’re talking about are areas that he could potentially end up in,” Omar added. “And they’re racially profiling. They’re looking for young men who look Somali and who they think are undocumented. My son was born here, so that’s the young man they harassed and he said they entered the country. mosque [Muslim house of worship] while he was there praying. They did nothing.
Attention was focused on Minnesota after state Department of Human Services employees accused Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz of being responsible for the depletion of their local social service programs after allegedly ignoring whistleblowers’ claims that $1 billion in funds had been embezzled through fraudulent operations.
ICE operations targeting Minneapolis, known as the Twin Cities, in Minnesota, were confirmed to be underway on Dec. 9 by CBS News, and hundreds of people are expected to be targeted, the outlet reported.
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