Trump says US Justice Department ‘looking at’ Ilhan Omar’s wealth
US president says he is sending border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota amid protests against killing of demonstrator Alex Pretti.

Published On 26 Jan 202626 Jan 2026
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United States President Donald Trump has suggested that his Justice Department is investigating the wealth of Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar as his administration grapples with the fallout from the killing of demonstrator Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
Trump also said on Monday that he is sending his border czar, Tom Homan, to the US state of Minnesota, which has been witnessing protests since federal immigration officers fatally shot Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse, on Saturday morning.
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“Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me. Separately, a major investigation is going on with respect to the massive 20 Billion Dollar, Plus, Welfare Fraud that has taken place in Minnesota, and is at least partially responsible for the violent organised protests going on in the streets,” Trump wrote in a social media post.
“Additionally, the DOJ [Department of Justice] and Congress are looking at ‘Congresswoman’ Illhan Omar, who left Somalia with NOTHING, and is now reportedly worth more than 44 Million Dollars. Time will tell all.”
Omar’s net worth has increased to the millions of dollars in recent years due to her new husband’s wealth.
But Trump previously openly urged Attorney General Pam Bondi to open probes into his political opponents.
Last week, Trump said Omar “should be investigated for Financial and Political Crimes, and that investigation should start, NOW”.
Omar, who is of Somali descent, is one of Trump’s favourite targets, and he often deploys Islamophobic language to attack her.
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The Muslim American congresswoman, whose district is based in Minneapolis, has been a vocal critic of Trump’s policies and rhetoric, including his attacks against the Somali community.
After Trump attacked Omar and called the Somali community “garbage” last month, Omar accused him of having a “creepy” obsession with her.
“I hope he gets the help he desperately needs,” she said at that time.
In recent months, Trump has been incessantly invoking Omar and the Somali community, seizing on a COVID-era welfare embezzlement scandal in Minnesota in which dozens of people, including some Somali immigrants, have been charged.
Late last year, Trump mocked Omar’s Islamic headscarf in one of his rants over Minnesota, saying that she is “always wrapped in her swaddling hijab”.
At the same time, the US administration launched an immigration crackdown in Minnesota that appeared to be targeting the state’s seizable Somali community.
But immigration officers’ aggressive tactics in the state have turned into a national crisis. Earlier this month, a federal officer fatally shot Renee Good, a US citizen and a mother of three, as she tried to flee immigration agents who surrounded her car.
The Trump administration accused her of trying to ram the officer, but video footage cast doubt over that claim.
Then came the killing of Pretti, who was shot multiple times after a tussle with immigration agents. The White House described the victim as a “domestic terrorist” and said he was carrying a gun.
But videos from multiple angles showed that the late protesters had a cell phone in one hand while their other hand was raised and empty before the shooting.
The killing of both Good and Pretti took place in Minneapolis, which is partly represented by Omar.
“I am absolutely horrified that federal agents are targeting and executing our residents instead of protecting them,” the congresswoman said in a statement on Saturday.
She called on federal immigration officers to leave the city and for the impeachment of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.