CHICAGO: Attorneys for Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar have accused federal authorities of violating restrictions imposed by a judge during a search of her Washington, D.C. home and demanded the immediate return of property seized by investigators.
In a letter to the US Department of Justice obtained by The Washington Post, Omar’s attorneys said federal agents ignored “key restrictions” attached to the warrant authorizing the early-morning search on Monday, Oct. 12.
The attorneys, Amy Jeffress and Joshua Matz of the Washington law firm Hecker Fink, argued that the search violated Omar’s constitutional rights and described the investigation as politically motivated.
They also demanded the return of property seized during the search, including Omar’s cellphone, as well as the preservation of recordings and other records connected to the operation.
Jeffress and Matz were unavailable for comment on Saturday.
According to The Washington Post, Omar’s attorneys said agents failed to comply with requirements including providing her lawyers with a copy of the warrant and contacting the House Office of General Counsel before carrying out the search.
Her lawyers also argued that the operation ran contrary to long-standing Department of Justice norms intended to avoid overt investigative actions involving political candidates close to an election, where such steps could create the appearance of partisan interference.
The Department of Justice has defended the legality of the operation. Federal authorities have said Homeland Security Investigations agents executed a judicially authorized search warrant as part of an ongoing criminal investigation.
The investigation is examining allegations concerning Omar’s decades-old immigration and naturalization records, according to people familiar with the probe cited by US media. Omar has repeatedly denied wrongdoing.
Federal authorities also seized Omar’s phone and have issued more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas, including some to her relatives, according to a person briefed on the investigation.
The Department of Justice has declined to provide Arab News with details about any subpoenas.
In response to an Arab News request for information, the department said: “The Department declines to comment on the existence of subpoenas, or the lack thereof.”
Omar’s attorneys maintain that there is no basis for allegations that she violated US immigration laws.
Omar was born in Mogadishu, Somalia, in 1982. Her family fled the country’s civil war and spent several years in a refugee camp in Kenya before immigrating to the US in 1995. She became a naturalized US citizen in 2000 and was first elected to Congress in 2018.
The Minnesota Democrat, who represents the state’s 5th Congressional District, is seeking reelection in the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
The timing of the search, just weeks before the election, has drawn criticism from Democratic lawmakers and legal experts, some of whom have questioned whether the investigation is politically motivated. Omar has similarly described the investigation as an effort by the Trump administration to intimidate a political opponent.
The White House and Department of Justice have rejected suggestions that the search was improper, while the warrant itself remains sealed and Omar has not been charged with a crime.