FBI now investigating after Rep. Omar sprayed with nontoxic fluid during town hall; man arrested
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A man sprayed an unknown substance on Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar and was tackled to the ground Tuesday during a town hall in Minneapolis, where tensions over federal immigration enforcement have come to a head after agents fatally shot an intensive care nurse and a mother of three this month.
The audience cheered as the man, later identified as Anthony Kazmierczak, was pinned down and his arms were tied behind his back. In video of the incident, someone in the crowd can be heard saying, “Oh my God, he sprayed something on her.”
Minneapolis police said officers saw Kazmierczak use a syringe to spray an unknown liquid at Omar. They immediately arrested him and booked him at the county jail for third-degree assault, spokesperson Trevor Folke said. Forensic scientists responded to the scene.
By early afternoon Wednesday, Minneapolis police were telling reporters to reach out to the FBI for questions about the investigation.
Kazmierczak has not been charged in connection with the incident. MPR News typically does not identify suspects unless they are charged with a crime but did so in this case given Omar’s prominence as a member of Congress.
— MPR News staff
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