US Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has claimed that an internal investigation found Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan Omar married her brother in an attempt to bring him into the United States.
Mullin said the man was Ahmed Elmi, whom Omar married for a second time, and claimed he now lives in London. “We know that she married her brother to try to bring him into the United States,” he said.
Omar has consistently denied the allegation. She has since married for a third time and is now the wife of political consultant Tim Mynett.
Speaking to conservative commentator Benny Johnson, Mullin described Omar’s alleged actions as “possible illegal activity” and said the investigation was continuing.
He also suggested that Omar could face deportation if the allegations were proved, despite her position as a member of Congress.
“There’s no expiration to that,” Mullin said when discussing potential charges. “If we can prove it that, maybe you shouldn’t have been here in the first place, we’ll deport you.”
Ilhan Omar has denied the allegation
The claims centre on Omar’s reported marriage to Elmi while she was still married to her first husband, Ahmed Hirsi. Omar married Hirsi in a Muslim ceremony in 2002, which was not registered with the state.
A former friend, Abdihakim Osman, previously said Omar had told him she wanted to obtain papers for her brother so he could remain in the United States. He said, however, that few people realised this allegedly involved a marriage until a marriage certificate emerged years later.
The first report claiming that Omar and Elmi were siblings appeared online in 2016. Elmi was reported to have attended North Dakota State University, Omar’s former university, after their alleged marriage.
Omar’s office did not immediately comment on Mullin’s latest claims.
The Department of Homeland Security did not deny the allegation, but said it did not comment on “specific investigative techniques, ongoing investigations, or potential future actions”.
“No one, including members of Congress, are above the law,” a department spokesperson added.
Mullin insisted that any action against Omar would not be politically motivated, although she has been a longstanding target of Donald Trump, who has repeatedly criticised her on social media and pushed for her to be investigated.
“When we move forward, it’s not political,” Mullin said.
