US President Donald Trump has said Somali-born congresswoman Ilhan Omar could face prison as well as deportation as federal authorities investigate alleged false statements in her immigration records.
Speaking at an Oval Office event announcing rewards for reporting fraud, Trump said, “She could also go to jail,” adding that this was his opinion.
Omar is a Democratic lawmaker representing Minnesota and a frequent critic of the president. Federal agents searched her Washington home earlier this month, and investigators are examining whether her age was misrepresented when she gained citizenship through her father in 2000.
She arrived in the United States as a Somali refugee in 1995. Omar denies wrongdoing and says the investigation is part of a campaign of political intimidation against her.
Her lawyers have challenged the search and demanded the return of seized property. A previous review of her immigration records during Trump’s first administration found no evidence of wrongdoing, according to The Washington Post.
