Minnesota Democratic Party spokeswoman Ilhan Omar told local CBS affiliate WCCO on Sunday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detained her son Saturday night but allowed him to leave after he showed proof of citizenship.
Tensions have risen in Minnesota grew up as media attention focused on Somali immigrants in the state following disclosure about the massive Social Security fraud scandal in December. Speaking on “WCCO Sunday Morning” with Esme Murphy, Omar accused ICE of stopping her 20-year-old son after he stopped at Target and then letting him go once he showed his passport.
“But yesterday, after he stopped at Target, he was stopped by ICE agents, and as soon as he was able to show his passport, they let him go,” Omar said.
Murphy then asked Omar if her son entered Target with his passport on Saturday night, to which the Democratic lawmaker replied that he always carries it with him. (RELATED: Watch Minneapolis Mayor Pander to Somalis in the Worst Way During Cheating Scandal)
– In case he gets stopped? Murphy asked.
“Yes,” Omar replied.
ICE did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation's request for comment before publication.
Before filing, Murphy also asked Omar about concerns about ICE raids in Minneapolis, as the congresswoman said she was concerned about a restaurant her son frequents.
“It was last Friday and, you know, usually my son goes to Friday prayers with his friends and then they all go and eat at their favorite restaurant in Cedar-Riverside. I knew that earlier in the day I had seen a video from Representative Mahmoud Noor and others that there were ICE agents in Cedar,” Omar said. “So I kept calling my son to see if he was okay, if he had any run-ins with him, and he wasn’t answering.”
“I ended up having a chance to talk to him that evening and I had to remind him how concerned I was because all of these areas that they were talking about are areas that he could end up in,” Omar added. “And they do racial profiling. They look for young people who look Somali and who they think are undocumented. My son was born here, so they targeted the young man and he said they actually came to mosque [Muslim house of worship] while he was there praying. They didn't do anything.”
Minnesota's focus has been on employees of the state's Department of Human Services. accused Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz on responsibility for depleting local social service programs after he allegedly ignored whistleblower claims that $1 billion in funds had been drained. funnel-shaped through fraudulent transactions.
On December 9, CBS News confirmed that ICE operations targeting Minneapolis, known as the Twin Cities, in Minnesota, were continuing. It is expected that hundreds of people will become victims, the newspaper reports. reported.
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