The Trump administration’s recent effort to bring the law down on Rep. Ilhan Omar could go as far as seeking to strip the Minnesota congresswoman of her citizenship for alleged immigration fraud. But a criminal investigation is unlikely to yield results the president wants, according to a former federal prosecutor.
Michael Wildes, an immigration attorney, told Fox News Digital that investigators face a “very high bar” to build a case against Omar after White House border czar Tom Homan confirmed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is conducting a “criminal” investigation against the progressive squad member.
It all stems from claims that Omar married her brother to gain U.S. citizenship, which she has repeatedly denied.
President Donald Trump has a longstanding feud with Omar going back to when she was first elected in the middle of his first term, and quickly became one of his most vocal critics in Congress. Trump has repeatedly called for Omar to be sent back to Somalia because of her alleged fraudulent activity.
The Trump administration continues to ramp up efforts to denaturalize and deport individuals accused of immigration fraud. And Vice President JD Vance claimed earlier this year that the Department of Justice is investigating Omar for alleged fraud and immigration violations.
But questions remain over what a potential prosecution and denaturalization case against the Somali-born lawmaker would require.
Wildes said that investigators would need to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Omar knowingly entered her marriage â to a man critics allege is her brother â for the sole purpose of evading U.S. immigration laws.
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“In order to establish a successful marriage fraud case, the government would have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt⦠that the defendant knowingly entered into a marriage with the primary purpose to evade immigration laws and get a benefit,” Wildes said.
Wildes noted that even if Omar and her husband, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, decided after getting married that their partnership could be a scheme for Elmi to fast pass Americas immigration process, this would not be considered marriage fraud in court.
He continued, “Those are very high bars and thresholds that they would have to surmount. The immigration benefit cannot be a byproduct, or secondary consideration. This is not deemed to be illegal.”
If evidence was presented to prove Omar and Elmi committed marriage fraud, the Minnesota Democrat could face up to five years in jail, a maximum fine of $250,000, or both.
Wildes also pointed out that there are statutes of limitation that could hinder a potential prosecution and make it more difficult to prosecute Omar for marriage fraud, as that marriage was in 2009. But there is still a pathway for Omar to be denaturalized, which Homan described as a “very serious process” while discussing the investigation into the congresswoman.
“The question is: Do they have it factually, and is it the right thing to do?” Wildes said.
“The question is whether or not inadvertences were made not purposefully and whether or not it’s over the top to then denaturalize somebody,” he said. “We’re talking about taking away a benefit and then banishing them from the United States.”
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