The U.S. Department of Homeland Security denied claims by Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents pulled over her 20-year-old son to demand proof of U.S. citizenship.
“ICE has absolutely zero record of its officers or agents pulling over Congresswoman Omar’s son,” DHS stated on Dec. 16. “With no evidence, it is shameful that Congresswoman Omar would level accusations to demonize ICE as part of a PR stunt.”
Omar made the allegation in an interview with a CBS News affiliate in Minnesota on Dec. 14. She claimed that the night before, her son “made a stop at Target, he did get pulled over by ICE agents, and once he was able to produce his passport ID, they did let him go.”
“They are racially profiling,” she said.
Omar, who came to the United States from Somalia at age 12, said she believes the agency is “looking for young men who look Somali that they think are undocumented.”
“Allegations that ICE engages in ‘racial profiling’ are disgusting, reckless and categorically FALSE,” DHS stated. “What makes someone a target for immigration enforcement is if they are illegally in the U.S.—NOT their skin color, race, or ethnicity.”
