Man accused of squirting US lawmaker Ilhan Omar with vinegar charged with assault

MINNEAPOLIS – The man accused of

using a syringe to squirt vinegar onto US Representative Ilhan Omar

at a community meeting in Minneapolis this week was charged with assault by federal prosecutors on Jan 29.

Hours later, the local prosecutor in Minneapolis said she was also charging the man, Anthony Kazmierczak, with assault and making a threat of violence, saying that she was doing so because of diminished trust in the federal government and because of concerns that US President Donald Trump might pardon the man of any federal charges if he were to be convicted.

On Jan 27, Kazmierczak sprayed Ms Omar with apple cider vinegar and water, a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent wrote in an affidavit filed in federal court.

Ms Omar, a Democrat who has repeatedly criticised the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota, had just finished calling for the resignation of Ms Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, when Kazmierczak approached her and sprayed her, the agent wrote. The agent wrote that Kazmierczak appeared to say afterwards: “You’re splitting Minnesotans apart.”

The account by agent Derek Fossi said the liquid stained the Congress member’s clothes and may have reached her face and right eye. His affidavit included a photograph of the syringe Kazmierczak, 55, is accused of using.

In the moments after she was sprayed, Ms Omar approached the man with one fist raised. Security guards then tackled him. She was not injured, and she continued to speak at the event, waving off staff members who urged her to be evaluated medically.

“An assault on a member of Congress is an assault on the democratic values that underpin this nation,” Mr Richard Evanchec, the interim special agent in charge of the FBI office in the Minneapolis area, said in a statement.

The criminal complaint filed by Ms Mary Moriarty, the Hennepin County attorney, said Ms Omar believed that the man had told her she should die before he was tackled.

Mr Fossi said in his affidavit that he had interviewed a “close associate” of Kazmierczak, who told him that the accused had said years ago that “somebody should kill” Ms Omar.

The agent also referred to a political cartoon critical of Ms Omar that Kazmierczak, a Minneapolis resident, had shared on Facebook in October 2021. He posted frequently in recent years about his anger at Democratic lawmakers and policies.

Ms Moriarty’s decision to charge Kazmierczak with state crimes was a sign of how significantly trust has eroded between Minneapolis officials and the federal government in recent weeks, since the Trump administration sent a surge of immigration agents into the Twin Cities (Minneapolis and St Paul) region.

“While we have historically worked collaboratively with federal agencies to investigate crimes, that partnership has been damaged by political decisions coming from this administration,” Ms Moriarty said in a video posted online.

She noted that a conviction on state charges would not be subject to a presidential pardon. Ms Moriarty is among a group of liberal prosecutors who have created a coalition to help one another prosecute federal law enforcement officials who they believe have broken the law but who will not be prosecuted by the federal government.

Mr Trump is a frequent and harsh critic of Ms Omar. He suggested this week, with no evidence, that the attack on her had been staged.

On Jan 29, Kazmierczak made an initial appearance in federal court in Minneapolis. Kazmierczak, who has Parkinson’s disease, shook visibly throughout the proceeding. His lawyer Jean Brandl, a public defender, said Kazmierczak was between doses of medication to treat the symptoms of the disease at the time of the attack and that he had not been receiving those medications since he was jailed.

“I am very concerned about his health,” she said.

Judge Dulce J. Foster, who presided over the hearing, instructed US Marshals to ensure that he received the medications as soon as possible. She then ordered that Kazmierczak be held in jail until his next court appearance on Feb 3, when he is expected to enter a plea.

“There are concerns here, not just about his physical health but his mental stability,” she said.

At least two other elected officials, state Senator Bobby Joe Champion and Ms LaTrisha Vetaw of the Minneapolis City Council, said after Ms Omar’s speaking event that they, too, had been hit by the liquid. Ms Moriarty said on Jan 28 that her office was also investigating.

The federal crime that Kazmierczak was charged with relates specifically to the assault or intimidation of federal officers. The statute says that a conviction can lead to a maximum sentence of one year in prison, unless the assault involves “physical contact with the victim”, in which case the maximum sentence rises to eight years. A conviction on the state charge of making threats of violence carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

Ms Omar’s office did not respond to a request for comment. Shortly after the incident on Jan 27, she wrote on social media: “I don’t let bullies win.” NYTIMES