ICE Withholds All Records on Ilhan Omar Immigration Fraud Probe, Citing Ongoing Enforcement Proceedings

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is refusing to release any records related to an investigation into allegations of immigration fraud involving Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., citing a Freedom of Information Act exemption that protects ongoing law enforcement activities.

Just the News submitted a FOIA request in January seeking documents pertaining to any ICE investigations into claims that Omar married a relative in order to help him remain in the United States. The longstanding allegations center on Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, whom Omar legally married in 2009 and divorced in 2017. Critics have asserted that Elmi is actually her biological brother and that the marriage was entered for immigration purposes. Omar has consistently and categorically denied the claims. No court records, DNA evidence, or other public documentary proof has ever substantiated the assertion that the two are siblings.

In a response issued in May, ICE stated that it was withholding the requested information in full under Title 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(7)(A). “Disclosure of any responsive records at this time could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings,” the agency wrote. The exemption applies to records compiled for law enforcement purposes when their release could reasonably be expected to interfere with pending or contemplated enforcement actions. Department of Justice guidance requires a reasonable likelihood of such proceedings and an articulable risk of harm, such as tipping off subjects or compromising investigative techniques.

The refusal confirms that ICE considers the matter an active enforcement proceeding. Border Czar Tom Homan stated in December 2025 that the Department of Homeland Security was “pulling the records” and “looking at it.” Vice President JD Vance has separately indicated that the Department of Justice is examining related issues. No public charges have been filed against Omar, and her congressional office did not respond to requests for comment on the FOIA denial.

Omar, who represents Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District, arrived in the United States as a refugee from Somalia in the 1990s. The marriage-related allegations first gained wider attention during her 2016 state legislative campaign and have periodically resurfaced, including during her subsequent congressional races and amid broader scrutiny of immigration and fraud issues in Minnesota’s Somali community. The congresswoman has maintained that the claims are baseless political attacks.

The FOIA denial leaves the public without access to whatever investigative materials ICE has compiled. The agency’s invocation of the enforcement-proceedings exemption indicates that the probe remains open and that officials believe releasing the records at this stage would risk compromising it. Further developments would depend on whether the investigation progresses to formal charges or is eventually closed.