The case has also renewed attention on questions surrounding Omar’s name and identity. According to Fox News Digital, a Justice Department court filing identified her as “Ilhan Nur Said Elmi, a/k/a Ilhan Abdullahi Omar.”
Sources familiar with the investigation told Fox News Digital that Ilhan Nur Said Elmi was Omar’s birth name. The Minnesota Democrat has strongly disputed that assertion.
For now, the investigation remains ongoing, and the allegations have not been established in court.
Omar Makes Public Appearance at Somali Commercial Center
During Friday’s visit, Omar appeared at ease as she greeted supporters, posed for photographs and spoke with people inside Karmel Mall. Security personnel remained nearby as the congresswoman and Ellison moved through the property.
Before arriving at the shopping center, the two Democrats had cast early ballots at a Minneapolis polling location. Their subsequent visit brought them to a commercial destination that its owner describes as the largest Somali shopping center in the world.
Fox News Digital received permission to explore the property from its owner, Basim Sabri, a Minneapolis real estate developer with longstanding connections to Omar and other local political figures.
The four-story complex offers a shopping environment unlike the conventional American mall. Approximately 900 vendors operate within the property, providing everything from traditional clothing to international financial services.
Many storefronts are separated by metal roll-up shutters. Business owners raise them when they arrive, while operating schedules appear to differ from one merchant to another.
Inside, visitors can find Somali clothing retailers, barbershops, travel agencies and businesses that help customers transfer money internationally. Some vendors also sell prepaid electronic SIM cards for people who need communications services while traveling abroad.
Money-transfer businesses advertise connections to Somalia, Kenya and other countries across East Africa, reflecting the commercial relationships maintained by members of the local immigrant community.
Somali is widely spoken throughout the building, and English is often less prominent in everyday conversations.
The food court also reflects the area’s cultural character. Somali, Palestinian and American flags hang at equal heights, while a blue ceiling decorated with a white star evokes the design of Somalia’s national flag.
Mall Owner Defends Immigrant Entrepreneurs
Sabri described the surrounding neighborhood as a distinctive cultural and commercial community that has developed its own identity within Minneapolis.
“You are standing at the Karmel Mall, and the surrounding community next to us, and its referred to as [the] Islamic Peace Village by many other people as well,” Sabri told Fox News Digital in an interview outside his mall. “Karmel Mall is the largest Somali mall in the world, and it’s also the largest mall in the city of Minneapolis.”
The developer said the property serves as a launching point for entrepreneurs who want to establish businesses before eventually moving into larger locations.
“It is kind of an incubator setting where many businesses start in here, and then many succeed and grow and move somewhere else, to a bigger space,” said Sabri.
Nevertheless, Fox News Digital reported that visitors unfamiliar with the complex, especially those carrying cameras, attracted attention from security personnel and some patrons. Sabri personally instructed guards to permit the outlet’s journalists to move around the property during an earlier visit.
The owner has also used the mall to express his political views.
In February 2024, Sabri barred Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat, from entering the property after Frey vetoed a City Council resolution calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.
Sabri maintains connections to Omar and said he knew her late father, although he declined to elaborate on their relationship.
His influence in the neighborhood extends beyond the shopping center. He owns several apartment buildings near the Lake Street property, many of which house Somali residents.
During interviews with Fox News Digital, Sabri discussed his journey from an impoverished childhood in the Middle East to studying in Minneapolis and building a substantial real estate portfolio.
He also spoke about his relationships with Minneapolis politicians, whom he repeatedly referred to as “whores,” and helped arrange an interview with City Council Vice President Jamal Osman.
Developer’s Criminal Record Adds Another Dimension
Sabri’s business success has not come without controversy. In 2005, he received a 33-month federal prison sentence for bribing a Minneapolis public official.
He discussed his incarceration with Fox News Digital, including time spent at the federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas.
His background adds another dimension to the story of a property owner who has become an influential voice in a politically significant Minneapolis neighborhood.
The mall’s defense of immigrant-owned businesses also comes amid continuing controversy over major public-assistance fraud cases in Minnesota. Some of those cases have involved Somali American defendants, fueling wider disputes over government oversight, the administration of public benefits and accountability for taxpayer funds.
Sabri acknowledged the controversy but rejected the notion that criminal conduct should define an entire community.
“You can see [the] Somalis not only integrating in the community, but also prospering,” he said. “Somalis are very smart business individuals.”
“Yes, there’s some crooks in every society … just like every other community,” he said.
“But my experience is that Somalis are very, very intelligent and extremely hard-working people.”
The developer argued that the businesses operating inside Karmel Mall demonstrate how immigrants can pursue financial independence and establish themselves in the United States.
“So, I would invite anybody to come into the mall, and know that there are many people doing a great job and making a good living, and learning the American dream, and doing business, and opening businesses that eventually tend to be very successful for them.”
Investigation Remains Unresolved
Omar’s appearance at Karmel Mall brought her back into public view as attention surrounding the October 12 federal raid continues.
The congresswoman has denied wrongdoing, and no criminal charge arising from the reported investigation has been established in the information provided.
The Justice Department filing’s reference to an alternate name and the claims attributed to sources familiar with the investigation have added another layer to the scrutiny. However, those details alone do not establish criminal conduct.
For now, the investigation’s outcome remains uncertain. Any determination of wrongdoing will depend on the evidence and the findings of the appropriate authorities.
Omar’s public appearance, meanwhile, highlighted the close connections between Minneapolis politics, immigrant entrepreneurship and a Somali commercial community that has become an important part of the city’s economic and cultural landscape.
