JD Vance announces that the DOJ is investigating Ilhan Omar for immigration fraud
"I don’t want to prejudge an investigation. It certainly seems like something fishy is there, but everybody’s entitled to equal justice under the laws," the vice president said.
Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar
Vice President JD Vance revealed that the Justice Department opened an investigation against Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar (Minn.) for alleged immigration fraud.
During remarks to reporters at the White House, picked up by The New York Post, Vance assured that the case is already under federal review and declined to draw conclusions, although he suggested there were questions about the lawmaker's immigration history.
"I don’t want to prejudge an investigation. It certainly seems like something fishy is there, but everybody’s entitled to equal justice under the laws," Vance said.
The vice president added that the government will continue the process to determine if there are sufficient elements to file charges.
"So we’re going to investigate it. We’re going to take a look at it. If we think that there’s a crime, we’re going to prosecute that crime, and that’s something the Department of Justice is looking at right now," he said.
According to theNew York Post, Vance—who is in charge of the administration's efforts to combat fraud linked to welfare benefits—had already stated earlier this year that Omar “definitely committed immigration fraud.”
Omar's chief of staff, Connor McNutt, rejected the accusation and called the claim "a ridiculous lie," according to the same report.
The media outlet recalls that Omar has faced questions for years about her immigration status, family finances and alleged ties to a fraud scheme related to aid during the pandemic in Minnesota.
The suspicions
Omar, the Post adds, has spoken little about that relationship and has maintained it was brief, claiming they were separated most of the time except for a two-year period between 2009 and 2011. The media outlet indicates that there is no record of children together.
The report further mentions that Omar was previously married to Ahmed Abdisalan Hirsi in an Islamic ceremony in 2002, though the marriage would not have been legalized until January 2018, despite the fact that they had three children during that period.
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