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In a newly reported legal development drawing scrutiny to federal prosecutorial tactics in Minnesota, a Somali bodyguard was indicted in a bid to incriminate Ilhan Omar following questioning during a routine permanent residency interview. According to legal reports published this week, federal prosecutors filed a felony false-statement charge earlier this year against Abdullahi Mohamed, a dual Somali and British citizen who briefly worked on a security detail for the Minnesota congresswoman during an overseas trip. Defense attorney Bruce Rivers stated that investigators spent months attempting to leverage the criminal charge—alongside promises of immigration relief—to pressure his client into providing incriminating testimony against the lawmaker.
Court records and legal accounts indicate that the investigation stemmed from an October 2025 green card interview conducted after Mohamed married a United States citizen in Minnesota. During that session, immigration officials asked non-routine questions regarding whether he had ever interacted with American politicians or government officials. Rivers explained that Mohamed, who faced an English language barrier, answered negatively without realizing his brief overseas security assignment fell within the scope of the inquiry. Federal prosecutors subsequently used that response to bring a felony charge, a move former federal prosecutors and senior immigration judges described as highly unusual given the vagueness of the questioning.
Defense filings and media reports suggest that the effort formed part of a broader federal inquiry examining Representative Omar’s background and family citizenship history. However, after months of unsuccessful attempts to turn Mohamed into a cooperative witness, the Department of Justice moved to dismiss the indictment on September 4, citing a lack of federal interest in light of his anticipated departure from the country. In a public response, Justice Department officials maintained that the prosecution was unrelated to any ongoing political investigations, while Representative Omar’s office strongly criticized the reported tactics as an abuse of prosecutorial authority.
As details emerge showing how a Somali bodyguard was indicted in a bid to incriminate Ilhan Omar, legal ethics experts warn that conditioning immigration benefits on witness cooperation risks compromising evidentiary credibility. Following the dismissal of the felony case, Mohamed departed the United States, leaving behind his wife in Minnesota while declining further public comment. Moving forward, legal observers and civil rights advocates continue to monitor federal investigative practices in Minnesota as questions persist surrounding executive oversight and due process protections.