A man who confronted Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., at a Minneapolis town hall on Tuesday, and tried to spray her with a substance, was arrested and placed in police custody.
Omar, who has faced a barrage of near-daily attacks from President Donald Trump, had called for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be abolished and for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign or face impeachment moments before the man lunged toward her.
The suspect, named in the Hennepin County Jail roster as Anthony James Kazmierczak, 55, was arrested on suspicion of assault but has yet to be formally charged.
The man walked down the middle of the room and sprayed a liquid at Omar, appearing to yell, “You must resign,” before a security guard tackled him to the ground. A person was then heard saying, “Oh, my God, he sprayed something on her,” adding that it had a foul odor.
Local leaders who had spoken earlier at the event urged Omar to leave the room and “get checked,” but she said that “is what they want.”
“We will continue,” she said. “These f------ a--holes are not going to get away with this.”
The man was then removed from the room.
Minneapolis police said in a statement that officers “observed a man use a syringe to spray an unknown liquid” onto Omar, adding that the man was then arrested by officers and booked in the Hennepin County Jail on suspicion of third-degree assault.
“Representative Omar was uninjured and resumed speaking at the event,” the statement said.
Minneapolis forensic scientists responded to the scene, police added.
Omar's office said in a statement on her X account that she “is okay.”
“She continued with her town hall because she doesn’t let bullies win,” the statement said.
U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement that the man made “an unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice.”
“We are grateful for the rapid response of onsite security and our local law enforcement partners,” the statement added. “We are now working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society.”
Speaking to reporters after the event, Omar said, “I survived war, and I’m definitely going to survive intimidation and whatever these people think that they can throw at me, because I’m built that way.”
Omar has long been a focus of Trump's attacks. He mocked her and her home country, Somalia, at a rally in Iowa on Tuesday afternoon, saying immigrants must “show that they can love our country; they have to be proud, not like Ilhan Omar.”
On Monday, Trump said the Justice Department and Congress were “looking at” Omar.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the town hall incident.
Omar, who immigrated to the U.S. when she was 12 after having fled Somalia’s civil war, has previously spoken of her “unwavering love for America.” The congresswoman wrote in a post on X last month that “Trump’s obsession with me is beyond weird. He needs serious help.”
Kazmierczak's criminal record dates back to 1989, when he was charged and later pleaded guilty to an unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, according to public records. He was ordered to pay $551, the records show. It was unclear whether he was sentenced to serve time or put on probation.
Kazmierczak also has several prior traffic-related misdemeanor offenses on his record in Minnesota, according to court records reviewed by NBC News. He has been married and divorced twice.
In 2009, Kazmierczak was charged with driving while intoxicated in Minnesota and pleaded guilty. A year later, he was convicted again for driving under the influence.
Divorce records from 2017 showed that he was unemployed at the time and was receiving disability insurance benefits of nearly $40,000.
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who has previously bashed Omar, including seeking to subpoena records about her as she accused her of immigration fraud, wrote Tuesday on X that she was “deeply disturbed” to learn about what happened at the town hall.
“Regardless of how vehemently I disagree with her rhetoric — and I do — no elected official should face physical attacks. This is not who we are,” Mace wrote.
Several other lawmakers from both parties also condemned the attack.
In posts on X, Rep. Pete Stauber, R-Minn., called it "totally unacceptable," and Rep. Mark Alford, R-Mo., condemned it "in the strongest possible terms." Rep. Tom Barrett, R-Mich., called the attack "disturbing and unacceptable."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said in a post on X that he was "horrified," adding, "Political violence of any kind is never acceptable." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a post that the "attack on Rep. Omar tonight was a despicable act of political violence and intimidation."
The town hall altercation comes amid high tensions in Minneapolis after the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal officers and as Trump has indicated he wants to “de-escalate” in Minneapolis.
The incident is also the latest example of political violence in the U.S., from attempts on Trump's life to the assassination of Charlie Kirk. In Minnesota, former state House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed last year in what authorities called a “politically motivated assassination.” The man accused of shooting them is also alleged to have shot and injured another Minnesota Democrat, state Sen. John Hoffman.
More recently, Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., said he was punched in the face Friday at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, by a man who is alleged to have told him Trump was going to deport him.
U.S. Capitol Police released an annual report Tuesday on investigated threats related to Congress. It said Capitol Police last year investigated 14,938 "concerning statements, behaviors, and communications directed against Members of Congress, their families, staff, and the Capitol Complex."
The number of investigations increased for a third consecutive year and jumped from 9,474 in 2024.
