State Rep. Steve Drazkowski calls for charges against Congresswoman Ilhan Omar

State Rep. Steve Drazkowski called for criminal charges to be filed against U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, saying she repeatedly lied to the court.

In a news conference at the Hennepin County Government Center on Thursday, the Mazeppa Republican pointed to poster boards showing old social media posts that appear to contradict statements Omar made while seeking a divorce from her ex-husband.

Drazkowski said Instagram posts show Omar committed perjury when she wrote in a 2017 divorce filing that she did not know the location of her then-husband, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, and had not had contact with him for years. Drazkowski said he would share the information with district court judges, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and Attorney General Keith Ellison.

"The documents are crystal clear. I believe charges should be brought against Rep. Omar for her conduct. The punishment for perjury is up to five years for each count," Drazkowski said.

Omar spokesman Jeremy Slevin declined to comment on Drazkowski's claims and instead pointed to the work Omar, a Democrat from Minneapolis, has been doing to pass bills and connect with constituents since she was elected to Congress last year.

This was the latest in a series of announcements Drazkowski has made condemning Omar. He also created an "Omar Truth" website, where he calls for investigations into the allegations.

Drazkowski initially pushed state campaign-finance officials to look into how she was spending campaign money from her 2016 race for the Minnesota House. He said Omar used money from the account to pay for her divorce. The state campaign finance board did not find that to be the case but did require her to pay back campaign money she spent on a lawyer to fix a tax-return problem.

The board released documents in June showing that Omar had filed joint tax returns with her current husband, Ahmed Hirsi, in 2014 and 2015, despite being legally married to Elmi at the time. Earlier in August, Drazkowski requested the Internal Revenue Service and Minnesota Department of Revenue look into the situation.

Jessie Van Berkel • 651-925-5044