Ilhan Omar Claims ICE Pulled Over Her Son As Agents Arrest Hundreds In MN
Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar from Minnesota reported that federal immigration agents stopped her son on Saturday and requested proof of his citizenship. She added that her son “always carries” his passport with him when he is out and about.
Omar mentioned that ICE had previously entered a mosque while her son and others were praying, but they left without any incidents, CBS News reported.
“Yesterday, after he made a stop at Target, he did get pulled over by [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] agents, and once he was able to produce his passport ID, they did let him go,” Omar said in an interview with Esme Murphy on WCCO Sunday Morning.
After that, she said she “had to remind him just how worried I am, because all of these areas that they are talking about are areas where he could possibly find himself in and they are racially profiling, they are looking for young men who look Somali that they think are undocumented.”
Earlier this month, federal immigration agents increased their presence in the Twin Cities region of Minneapolis and St. Paul to target undocumented Somali immigrants.
More than 400 illegal immigrants have been arrested in Minnesota as part of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) initiative known as Operation Metro Surge, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on Friday, per The Epoch Times.
According to DHS, the operation focused on individuals with serious criminal records. The agency said the enforcement effort targeted people it described as posing significant public safety risks.
The arrests took place amid broader debate over so-called sanctuary policies, which refer to state or local practices that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Minnesota is considered a sanctuary jurisdiction under the criteria outlined by the Department of Justice in an Aug. 5 statement.
DHS said those arrested included a Burmese national convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct involving force or coercion, a Somali national convicted of robbery, a Laotian national convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a child under 13, and an Ecuadorian national previously arrested for assaulting a police officer.
In a statement, DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin criticized Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both of whom have opposed ICE enforcement actions, saying their positions have failed to adequately protect residents of the state.
“They let these monsters and child predators roam free,” McLaughlin said. “Thanks to our brave law enforcement, Minnesota is safer with these thugs off their streets.”
The arrests come as immigration enforcement officers continue to face a surge in attacks nationwide.
On Dec. 12, DHS said an ICE officer was attacked by a criminal illegal immigrant in Tullos, Louisiana, who “savagely bit the officer’s hand while resisting arrest.”
Meanwhile, Omar announced that she has launched two formal congressional inquiries into recent immigration enforcement actions by the Trump administration affecting Somali communities in Minnesota and nationwide.
In a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Omar requested information about Operation Metro Surge, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement deployment in the Twin Cities area. Omar alleged that the operation has involved racial profiling, the detention of U.S. citizens, the use of excessive force, and violations of constitutional rights.
Omar’s letter cited reported incidents in which individuals who said they were U.S. citizens were detained by ICE agents, a woman wearing a hijab was mocked, pepper spray was used on bystanders, and agents carried out arrests near homes, schools, and a university campus without presenting warrants.
The New York Times reported that roughly 100 ICE agents were deployed to Minnesota as part of the operation.
In a separate letter to Noem, Omar, and several other members of Congress, also sought an explanation for the administration’s consideration of ending Temporary Protected Status for Somali nationals living in the United States.
part 1
The black duffel bag hit the porch with a heavy thud.
Its zipper burst open.
Everything inside spilled across the wooden boards.
At first, nobody moved.
Then Sheriff Daniels stepped forward.
A black handgun slid across the porch until it stopped against the front step.
His hand instantly went to his holster.
"Nobody move!"
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
The cameraman zoomed in.
Beside the handgun lay dozens of unopened envelopes.
Every one of them carried military postage.
Every one of them was addressed to:
Mr. and Mrs. Richard Parker
The return address read:
Sergeant Emily Parker
Camp Arifjan, Kuwait.
The dates stretched across four years.
Some envelopes were faded from heat.
Others were still sealed with military tape.
Mrs. Ellis whispered, "Those are her letters..."
Pastor Ray slowly picked one up from the porch.
"It hasn't even been opened."
Another envelope.
Still sealed.
Then another.
Twenty.
Thirty.
More than anyone could count.
Mr. Greer's face turned pale.
"I delivered every one of those."
Nobody answered.
Inside the house came the sound of something crashing.
Emily couldn't breathe.
"I wrote every month."
Her voice barely carried.
"I never missed a birthday... never missed Christmas... never missed Mom's anniversary after her surgery."
She looked toward the windows.
"You never read them?"
Silence.
Sheriff Daniels carefully picked up the pistol using a handkerchief.
"This weapon isn't loaded."
Deputy Harris stepped beside him.
"Serial number's still intact."
Daniels stared.
His expression changed.
"I know this gun."
The deputy frowned.
"What?"
"It was reported stolen."
"When?"
"Almost six years ago."
He looked toward the Parker house.
"By Richard Parker."
The entire crowd turned toward the front door.
Inside, someone shouted.
"No!"
Then another crash.
Mr. Greer suddenly remembered something.
"I have something."
He hurried back to his mail truck.
People watched him disappear into the driver's seat.
A moment later he returned carrying a thick leather folder.
"I wasn't sure I'd ever need this."
He handed it to the sheriff.
Daniels opened it.
Inside were photocopies.
Certified mail receipts.
Postal forwarding forms.
Rejected delivery notices.
Every document carried Richard Parker's signature.
The sheriff flipped page after page.
"Refused."
"Refused."
"Refused."
"Forward to sender."
Again.
Again.
Again.
Mr. Greer's voice trembled.
"Four years ago your parents came to the post office."
"They told us you were dangerous."
"They said if any military mail arrived, they didn't want it."
Emily stared at him.
"They said that?"
He nodded sadly.
"They claimed you'd threatened the family before you went away."
Mrs. Ellis burst into tears.
"Oh my God..."
Pastor Ray slowly removed his glasses.
"I told the congregation to pray for Richard and Linda."
"I thought they were grieving."
Across the street, whispers spread through the neighbors.
"I remember..."
"They said she assaulted someone."
"I heard she'd robbed a store."
"No... they told me she'd attacked her own father."
Every rumor.
Every lie.
Every cruel glance Emily had imagined while overseas...
Suddenly made sense.
She felt her knees weaken.
Mr. Greer caught her before she fell.
"You don't owe these people an apology."
Emily wiped away tears.
"I kept wondering why nobody answered."
She laughed bitterly.
"I thought everyone had forgotten me."
The sheriff continued examining the folder.
Then he stopped.
One document had a different heading.
Application for Declaration of Death in Absentia.
Daniels frowned.
"What is this?"
He read farther.
The filing claimed Emily Parker had been "missing with probable criminal activity."
Attached was a request to transfer ownership of her college trust, vehicle title, and military survivor benefits.
The application carried two signatures.
Richard Parker.
Linda Parker.
The crowd gasped.
"They tried to declare her legally dead?" someone whispered.
"No..."
"They couldn't..."
Emily's head snapped toward the house.
"My college trust?"
Her father had promised that account would always belong to her.
She had worked two jobs through high school because they insisted every dollar mattered.
Now...
Her stomach twisted.
They had tried to erase her completely.
Inside the house, another loud bang echoed.
Deputy Harris looked toward the sheriff.
"They're moving."
Daniels nodded once.
"Cover the back."
Two deputies sprinted around the sides of the property.
The cameraman followed until another officer pushed him back.
Suddenly the upstairs curtains flew open.
Richard Parker appeared for only a second.
His face was drenched with sweat.
He looked directly at Emily.
Not with guilt.
With hatred.
"You should've stayed gone!" he screamed.
Then he disappeared.
Mrs. Parker's terrified voice echoed from somewhere inside.
"Richard, stop!"
Another crash.
Glass shattered.
Deputy Collins shouted from the backyard.
"Sheriff!"
"They're trying to get out!"
The crowd surged toward the sidewalk before officers forced everyone back.
Sheriff Daniels drew a slow breath.
"This isn't about an escaped convict anymore."
He looked at the house.
"This is now a criminal investigation."
Emily stood frozen.
Four years she'd dreamed about coming home.
Four years imagining hugs.
Laughter.
A family dinner.
Instead...
Her own parents had spent those same four years convincing an entire town that she was a criminal.
And judging by the fear inside that house...
The lies were only beginning to unravel.
