WASHINGTON — Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota called the federal agents’ search of her Washington, D.C., home an "attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement." The Somali-born lawmaker, who is currently seeking her fifth two-year term in the House of Representatives, is a vocal critic of President Donald Trump and has frequently been subjected to his administration’s insults and attacks throughout her political career.

"For ten years, Trump has targeted me with baseless lies and smear campaigns. This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation," Omar said in a social media post following the enforcement action. "I will not be silenced."

A spokesperson for the Department of Justice confirmed the operation to TIME, stating, "Today in the Washington, D.C. area, Homeland Security Investigations executed a judicially authorized search warrant secured by the Department of Justice. This enforcement action is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation." The agency did not provide further details regarding the specifics of the case.

The U.S. Congress was not in session at the time of the operation, and it remains unclear whether Omar was inside her residence when federal agents arrived. Her congressional office swiftly denounced the raid as "an outrageous abuse of power," maintaining that the congresswoman has done nothing wrong.

According to Reuters, a source familiar with the investigation indicated that the probe is related to alleged immigration fraud. Part of the inquiry reportedly centers on immigration paperwork filled out by Omar’s late father when she was a child. Omar gained her U.S. citizenship in 2000 at the age of 17.

TIME reached out to both the White House and Omar’s office for further clarification regarding the ongoing probe. While the official justification for the criminal investigation has not been fully detailed by prosecutors, the congresswoman’s immigration history has repeatedly drawn scrutiny from her political opponents. Earlier this year, Republican Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina unsuccessfully attempted to subpoena records pertaining to Omar’s citizenship and background.

The focus on Omar’s past has been amplified by high-ranking administration figures in recent months. In a March podcast interview, Vice President J.D. Vance claimed, without offering evidence, that Omar had committed immigration fraud against the United States. Omar’s office immediately dismissed Vance’s public assertions as fabricated and defamatory.

Last month, White House border czar Tom Homan confirmed to Fox News that Omar was the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation, though he similarly declined to provide specific details about the nature of the allegations or potential charges.

Trump Says He Had "Nothing to Do With" Raid

Hours after federal agents executed the search warrant at her D.C. residence, President Donald Trump addressed reporters outside the White House. He suggested he was not personally involved in the investigation while simultaneously referring to the Minnesota lawmaker in highly critical terms.

"Well, I understand they’re looking at her very carefully," Trump told reporters. "I’ve always found her to be totally crooked, personally, but that has nothing to do with me."

He added: "I think she’s a terrible person, but that’s really up to the DOJ. I have nothing to do with it."

Democrats Condemn Raid on Omar’s Home

The federal search was carried out just over three weeks before the midterm elections, a high-stakes political contest in which Republicans are fighting to maintain their majorities in the House and Senate. The timing of the raid immediately drew sharp condemnation from Democratic leaders across the country, who framed the enforcement action as a politically motivated attack orchestrated by the executive branch.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz led the chorus of Democratic outrage, stating that "Americans see this for what it is—President Trump is abusing his power to go after political opponents weeks before an election."

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called the raid "deeply disturbing," arguing that it raises serious questions about the continued corrupt weaponization of federal law enforcement against the president’s political adversaries.

"Now, less than 30 days until the midterm election, his violent mass deportation machine has descended upon the home of a duly elected Member of Congress and her family," Jeffries said in a joint statement co-signed by House Minority Whip Representative Katherine Clark and Representative Pete Aguilar, chair of the House Democratic Caucus.

Representative Ro Khanna of California also characterized the development as disturbing, imploring any decent American to stand up and speak out against the action. Representative Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, echoed those sentiments, calling the search an outrageous escalation of executive overreach.

"Searching a Representative’s home over a decades-old immigration filing by her father is an authoritarian abuse of power," Garcia said. "No family deserves these continued attacks."

The controversy over the raid fits into a broader pattern of friction between the Trump administration and its critics. Last year, Trump publicly called on former Attorney General Pam Bondi to begin prosecuting several prominent Democrats, including California Senator Adam Schiff, former FBI Director James Comey, and New York Attorney General Letitia James, all of whom had previously led investigations into the president.

Legal challenges involving those figures have seen mixed developments. Last year, the Justice Department charged New York Attorney General Letitia James with mortgage fraud, though a federal judge ultimately dismissed the case after James denied the allegations. In April, a federal grand jury indicted former FBI Director James Comey over a social media post that the administration characterized as a threat against the president. Comey maintained his innocence and vowed to fight the charges, though that trial has been delayed until early 2027.

Omar Has Accused Trump of Having a "Weird" Obsession With Her

Trump has long targeted Omar and her native country of Somalia during speeches focused on immigration and national security. He has frequently pointed to well-documented instances of fraud within welfare programs in Minnesota involving individuals of Somali ancestry, drawing criticism for appearing to blame the broader Somali-American community rather than the specific individuals prosecuted for wrongdoing.

During a campaign-style address in Pennsylvania last December, Trump launched into an anti-immigration tirade that specifically referenced Omar, claiming she does "nothing but b-tch" and asserting that she comes from a country considered to be among the worst in the world. As members of the audience began chanting "send her back," the president remarked, "We ought to get her the hell out."

Omar responded at the time by characterizing Trump’s ongoing focus on her as a bizarre fixation.

"Since he has no economic policies to tout, he’s resorting to regurgitating bigoted lies instead," Omar posted on social media. "He continues to be a national embarrassment."

The hostility surrounding the congresswoman has occasionally boiled over into physical threats and security concerns. In January, during a town hall meeting in Minneapolis, Omar was approached by a man wielding a syringe who sprayed her with a liquid before being subdued by security personnel. Laboratory analysis later identified the substance as a mixture of water, apple cider vinegar, and acetic acid. Last month, 56-year-old Anthony James Kazmierczak was sentenced to 14 months in federal prison for the assault.

Following the town hall incident, Omar publicly criticized the tone of political discourse, arguing that hostile rhetoric from high-profile figures directly endangers her safety and the safety of her family.

"What the facts have shown, since I’ve gotten into elected office, is that every time the President of the United States has chosen to use hateful rhetoric to talk about me and the community that I represent, my death threats skyrocket," Omar said earlier this year. "I wouldn’t be where I am at today, having to pay for security, having the government to think about providing me security, if Donald Trump wasn’t in office and if he wasn’t so obsessed with me."