JUST IN: Ilhan Omar Under Fire After New Details Reveal Close Ties To Somali Minneapolis Fraudsters

Ilhan Omar is facing intense pressure after emerging details revealed deep personal and political proximity to several Somali-American figures now implicated in one of the largest fraud scandals in Minnesota history.

The massive scheme, centered around Minneapolis and surrounding communities, involved hundreds of millions of dollars in pandemic-era welfare programs that federal prosecutors say were systematically exploited. What began as a COVID-era child-nutrition effort ultimately evolved into a sprawling criminal enterprise, with officials describing the case as one of the most significant abuses of public funds in recent memory.

Dozens of defendants connected to the “Feeding Our Future” network and related organizations have already pleaded guilty to crimes ranging from wire fraud to money laundering. Prosecutors allege that individuals inflated meal counts, fabricated invoices, and funneled government money through sham vendors and shell companies. The fallout continues to spread, as investigators unravel how a program designed to help children became a vehicle for luxury purchases, overseas transfers, and personal enrichment.

Omar’s connection to the scandal is not through criminal allegations, but through proximity to several key individuals who later faced charges. Her 2018 victory celebration, for instance, was held at a restaurant co-owned by one of the men later convicted in the fraud case. Her campaign also received roughly $7,400 in contributions from individuals who were ultimately prosecuted. While she returned the money after the indictments became public, critics argue the relationship raises legitimate questions about political judgment and oversight.

Those criticisms have only intensified in light of comments from Bill Glahn, a policy fellow with the Minnesota-based Center of the American Experiment, who told The New York Post “[Rep. Omar] knew who these people were. People she personally knew were making tens of millions of dollars in this program.”

Washington, DC – April 28, 2025: Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) speaks during a public reception at the annual Muslim Advocacy Day at the Capitol.

Glahn went on to question her awareness of the operation, saying, “She had been inside the [Safari] facility on numerous occasions and couldn’t put 2 and 2 together? Either she’s terminally naive, or knew and didn’t care.”

The controversy has now grown beyond local politics, prompting congressional interest. The House Oversight Committee has begun reviewing whether any portion of the stolen taxpayer money was routed overseas, a question that gained traction in conservative circles but has not yet resulted in terrorism-related charges. While no indictments so far include terror financing, the possibility has been raised by lawmakers who want a full accounting of every dollar misused in the scheme.

Omar, for her part, has pushed back on what she considers politically motivated attacks. Her office and allied Minnesota lawmakers have argued that it is fundamentally unfair to blame an entire community for the actions of individuals.

“These Somalians have taken billions of dollars out of our country,” Trump told reporters earlier this week. “They’ve taken billions and billions of dollars. They have a representative, Ilhan Omar, who they say married her brother. She should be thrown the hell out of our country.”

“And most of those people, they have destroyed Minnesota. She should not be — and her friend shouldn’t be allowed — frankly, they shouldn‘t even be allowed to be Congress people, okay? They shouldn’t even be allowed to be Congress people, because they don’t represent the interests of our country,” he finished.