Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin says a federal investigation involving Rep. Ilhan Omar is active — and that investigators are looking beyond the long-running, disputed allegation about her marriage history.

Mullin made the comments during an interview with conservative commentator Benny Johnson at the Republican midterm convention.

Asked what would happen next, the DHS secretary answered: “Something’s going to happen. This is an ongoing investigation.”

Here is the exchange:

Mullin asserted that Omar married Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, whom he described as her brother, to help him enter the United States.

That allegation has circulated for years, but it has not been established in court or proven through publicly released government evidence. Omar has repeatedly denied that Elmi is her brother.

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The secretary also said investigators were examining what he called “the whole family migration” and possible illegal activity connected to how members of Omar’s family came to the United States.

“If we actually move a case forward, it’s not a political case,” Mullin said. “It’s actually a case because they did things wrong.”

He said DHS would need to prove that laws were broken before acting and argued that fraud tied to a person’s original admission or naturalization could still carry consequences years later.

A second post circulated the central portion of Mullin’s remarks Friday:

Newsweek reported that Mullin described the inquiry as broader than the marriage allegation and said possible violations involving the family’s migration were under review. The interview took place Thursday at the Republican midterm convention, where Johnson asked the secretary directly about possible consequences.

A current NewsRadio WKCY post summarized both sides of the dispute, noting Mullin’s claim while also stating that Omar denies it and that the allegation remains unproven:

The report did not identify a filed criminal charge, civil complaint or court proceeding against Omar arising from the marriage allegation. It also did not include newly released evidence establishing that Elmi is Omar’s sibling or disclose the investigative agency’s evidence.

That distinction matters. Mullin’s statement is news because the sitting DHS secretary publicly confirmed an active investigation and outlined its reported scope.

It does not, by itself, prove the underlying allegations.

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Mullin’s comments also mark a sharper public description than the administration had previously offered. He presented the inquiry as ongoing, connected it to both the marriage claim and family-migration questions, and said any enforcement decision would depend on investigators proving wrongdoing.

Vice President JD Vance made a related statement in May, saying the Justice Department was examining questions involving Omar and would prosecute if investigators found evidence of a crime.

CBS Minnesota reported at the time that Vance did not disclose details of the inquiry and said he did not want to prejudge it.

The outlet also noted that no evidence had been publicly produced showing that Omar committed immigration fraud. CBS said it sought comment from the Justice Department and Omar’s office.

That May statement placed the issue within a Justice Department review, while Mullin’s new remarks place the current scrutiny inside the Homeland Security secretary’s portfolio as well.

Neither official identified a docket number, disclosed investigative evidence or announced that prosecutors had authorized a case. Their comments establish that senior administration officials say the matter is being examined, but they leave the evidence and precise legal theory undisclosed.

Omar legally married Elmi in 2009 and legally divorced him in 2017. She has said they separated under their faith tradition in 2011.

Critics have alleged that Elmi was her brother and that the marriage was connected to immigration benefits. Omar has called that claim false and offensive.

PolitiFact reviewed the evidence assembled by the Minneapolis Star Tribune in 2019 and found that the newspaper could neither conclusively confirm nor rebut the sibling allegation.

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The review documented an unusual marriage timeline, overlapping addresses and Omar’s improper joint tax filings with Ahmed Hirsi while she was still legally married to Elmi.

It also found that much of the evidence offered for the sibling claim came from social-media screenshots and that reporters did not find a decisive public document proving the relationship.

The Star Tribune’s political editor told PolitiFact that the records raised questions about Omar’s relationship with Elmi and Hirsi, including a period when all three reportedly used the same Minnesota address.

He also said the available evidence did not allow the newsroom to determine whether Elmi and Omar were siblings. Years later, that unresolved evidentiary gap remains central to how any new official statement must be reported.

The legal consequences Mullin referenced would require more than a public accusation.

Under 8 U.S.C. § 1451, the government may seek revocation of naturalization if citizenship was illegally procured or obtained through concealment of a material fact or willful misrepresentation.

Such an action would require the government to bring a case and prove the statutory grounds. Mullin did not announce that a complaint had been filed against Omar.

The statute directs U.S. attorneys to institute revocation proceedings in federal district court upon an affidavit showing good cause. It also makes clear that a court order, not an agency interview or political statement, is the mechanism that cancels a certificate of naturalization.

Other immigration or criminal statutes could apply to proven false statements or fraud, depending on the facts and timing. Mullin did not specify which provision investigators are examining or identify any evidence that has satisfied the legal standard for a charge.

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For now, the confirmed development is narrower but still significant: the Homeland Security secretary says an investigation is ongoing, says its scope reaches beyond one disputed marriage allegation, and says consequences could follow if federal investigators establish wrongdoing.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport. View the original article here.

 

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