Border czar Tom Homan says Rep. Ilhan Omar could be denaturalized depending on investigation

Cole Reynolds, Sydney Kashiwagi and Sarah Nelson, Star Tribune on Oct 19, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — Border czar Tom Homan said he was told that federal investigators have a “strong case” against U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar and that it is possible she could be deported if she committed any wrongdoing.

In an appearance on Fox News’ “The Big Weekend Show” on Saturday night, Homan answered several questions about the investigation into Omar.

“She’ll be held to the same standards you and I are held,” Homan said about Omar. “If she violated law, then she’ll be held accountable.”

Family text messages are among the information that federal officials are reviewing as they continue their investigation into Omar, which came into public view Oct. 12 with the federal raid of her Washington, D.C., home, according to anonymous sources who spoke to the New York Times.

The messages came from a phone that belonged to one of Omar’s sisters and was previously seized by officials, the report said. The texts were among the information used to convince a federal judge to carry out the raid on Omar’s residence on Oct. 12.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests by the Minnesota Star Tribune to confirm the seizure of the sister’s phone. Omar’s office also did not comment on the phone seizure.

On Saturday’s show, Homan said he didn’t have specifics of the evidence that has been collected against Omar.

When asked by a Fox host if denaturalization or deportation was a possibility for Omar, Homan answered, “of course.”

“If you lie during the naturalization process, there is a process to denaturalize somebody,” he said.

Denaturalization is a “long, tedious process,” however, “if the evidence points that way, that can happen,” Homan said.

Homan was also asked if the investigation into Omar only involved immigration fraud or if there was any other potential wrongdoing that was being investigated.

“I’m not going to go there. ... That’s a question for the FBI,” Homan said. “I know things, but that’s a question for the FBI.”

When asked if what he was referring to had to do with something that happened in Minnesota, he replied again with a small smile, “a question for the FBI.”

The full scope of the investigation into Omar and other details remain unclear. A source familiar with the probe has said that officials have so far confiscated Omar’s phone, laptop, notebooks and passport and that some of her family members, including her sister, have been subpoenaed. The source said authorities have not subpoenaed her children or her husband, Tim Mynett.

Lawyers for Omar raised concerns over the raid of her residence and demanded the return of seized items in a letter sent to federal prosecutors on Friday and obtained by the Star Tribune. They described the search as “neither justified nor lawful.”

The investigation into the immigration status of Omar, a longtime critic of President Donald Trump, prompted cheers from the right but concern from the left and independent observers.

Omar has said that she naturalized as a U.S. citizen before turning 18. Her family fled the civil war in Somalia before moving to Minnesota in 1997, a couple years after she first arrived in the United States.

Documents released in 2019 showed discrepancies in her marriage history, long the basis for Republican accusations that she had illegally immigrated. But the Minnesota Star Tribune did not find conclusive evidence of wrongdoing. The Washington Post reported that federal officials scrutinized Omar during Trump’s first term, but ultimately declined to pursue a full investigation because of insufficient evidence.

This week, District of Columbia U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro also said her office was investigating Omar’s financial disclosures, which Omar amended this year following a probe from the House Oversight Committee.

During a podcast appearance on Friday, Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin described the investigation as a “strong case.”

In Friday’s letter, which was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, Omar’s representatives described the search as politically motivated. For months, they argued, Trump has made public a desire to see Omar criminally investigated, describing his statements as a campaign to harass and intimidate a political opponent.

“This vindictive, retributive, and politically motivated criminal investigation into one of the President’s chief congressional critics violates Representative Omar’s constitutional rights and threatens the separation of powers,” the attorneys wrote.

The raid on Omar’s home drew similar condemnation from congressional Democrats, who argued that it amounted to a weaponization of federal power against Omar, who is seeking reelection in November. Some former federal prosecutors said the search appears to have broken a longstanding DOJ norm of not targeting candidates for roughly 60 days prior to election.

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Nicole Norfleet of the Minnesota Star Tribune contributed to this story.

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