Federal investigators questioned a former bodyguard for Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar about her marriage history and a mysterious $10,000 payment as authorities continue a wide-ranging criminal investigation involving the Minnesota congresswoman.
The questioning provides new details about the scope of the federal investigation, which previously became public when authorities searched Omar’s Washington, D.C., home and issued more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas to people connected to her.
Investigators questioned Abdullahi Mohamed, a Somali and British citizen who briefly worked as part of Omar’s security detail during an overseas trip, according to an account from his attorney, Bruce Rivers.
Mohamed himself had come under federal scrutiny after applying for permanent U.S. residency.
During an October 2025 immigration interview, Mohamed was asked whether he had worked for the Somali government while in the United States and whether he had interacted with American government officials or politicians.
Mohamed answered no to both questions despite having previously served on Omar’s security detail and visited her Capitol Hill office.
Rivers said Mohamed has limited English proficiency and did not understand the questions.
His green card application was denied, and the Justice Department subsequently investigated him for allegedly making false statements under oath.
Federal prosecutors eventually filed a felony charge against Mohamed, with the case handled by senior officials in the Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office.
But during a March meeting with prosecutors, investigators concentrated heavily on Omar rather than Mohamed, according to Rivers.
“They asked him if he knew who she was married to and that kind of stuff,” Rivers said. “He didn’t know any information about that stuff.”
Investigators also asked Mohamed about a $10,000 payment involving Omar and Mohamed’s brother.
Rivers said investigators described the transaction as a possible bribe, although publicly available court records do not explain the government’s theory surrounding the payment.
Omar has not been charged with a crime in connection with the transaction.
After the meeting, Mohamed reportedly questioned his brother about the money and subsequently told prosecutors that his brother said the $10,000 payment had been used to settle a loan.
The investigation is also examining Omar’s family immigration history and her controversial 2009 marriage to Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, a British citizen.
Federal investigators are examining whether the marriage was fraudulent and designed to help Elmi obtain immigration benefits, according to reports about the investigation.
Omar has repeatedly denied allegations that Elmi was her brother or that the marriage involved immigration fraud.
The FBI and Department of Homeland Security previously examined the marriage during the Obama administration in 2016 and found some evidence suggesting possible fraud, according to current and former officials familiar with that investigation.
That inquiry did not result in charges, with prosecutors reportedly concluding that any potential offense was outside the applicable statute of limitations.
The current investigation has expanded considerably beyond the earlier inquiry.
Federal authorities searched Omar’s Washington residence last month, seized her phone and issued more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas, including subpoenas involving relatives.
Mohamed was also asked to testify before a Washington grand jury examining evidence related to Omar.
Rivers said his client again discussed the $10,000 payment and told the grand jury he had no substantive knowledge about Omar’s immigration or marital history. The following day, prosecutors moved to dismiss the indictment against Mohamed.
“There is no longer a federal interest in continuing prosecution in light of his anticipated removal from the United States,” prosecutors said in their filing.
Mohamed subsequently left the United States and is now living in Kenya. Rivers has alleged that prosecutors offered to intervene in Mohamed’s immigration case if he provided damaging information about Omar.
“The overarching theme was ‘give us everything and anything,’” Rivers said. “It was a fishing expedition without a lot of direction.”
Rivers further claimed prosecutors repeatedly told him the Omar investigation was “100 percent being run by 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.,” a reference to the White House.
The Justice Department disputed any connection between Mohamed’s prosecution and other investigations, saying his case was “completely unrelated to any current investigations.”
