What Was Ilhan Omar Sprayed With? Charges, Plea, and Prison Time

Representative Ilhan Omar was sprayed with a mixture of water and apple cider vinegar at a town hall meeting in North Minneapolis on January 27, 2026. A 55-year-old Minnesota man, Anthony James Kazmierczak, rushed the lectern with a syringe and squirted the liquid onto her skin and clothing. Omar was not injured. Kazmierczak has since pleaded guilty to a federal charge of assaulting a United States officer.¹

What the Lab Found in the Syringe

In the first hours after the attack, officers described the liquid only as an “unknown substance,” and city forensic scientists processed the scene.² Later laboratory analysis confirmed that the syringe held a mixture of water and apple cider vinegar, with testing verifying the presence of acetic acid.¹ The substance was determined to be non-toxic.³

Kazmierczak himself identified the liquid at the moment of arrest. He spontaneously told Minneapolis officers, “I squirted vinegar.”¹

What Happened at the Town Hall

Omar was speaking to roughly 100 attendees and had just called for the abolishment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the resignation or impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem when Kazmierczak stood up from the front row, approached the lectern, and sprayed her.⁴ The liquid stained her clothes and may have reached her face and right eye, according to the FBI affidavit filed in the case.⁵

After spraying her, Kazmierczak shouted, “She’s not resigning. You’re splitting Minnesotans apart,” before security tackled him.⁶ Minneapolis police arrested him at the scene and booked him into Hennepin County Jail on a preliminary charge of third-degree assault.⁷

The spray also landed on Minneapolis City Council Member LaTrisha Vetaw and State Senator Bobby Joe Champion, who were seated nearby, and at least one other attendee required hospital treatment for adverse effects from the incident.⁴⁸ Omar paused the event for about ten minutes, told the crowd, “We will continue… we are Minnesota strong,” and then spoke for roughly 25 more minutes.⁹

Who Anthony Kazmierczak Is

Kazmierczak, 55, was a Minnesota resident on long-term disability after a car accident that left him with chronic pain. His record included two DWI convictions in 2009 and 2010 and a 1989 felony conviction for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.¹⁰

His social media showed support for Donald Trump, ICE, and the conservative group Turning Point, and he was a member of a Twin Cities Turning Point chapter.¹⁰ An FBI affidavit disclosed that years before the attack, Kazmierczak had told a close associate in a phone call, “Somebody should kill that bitch,” referring to Omar.⁶ A close associate separately confirmed that statement to authorities, according to CBS News.¹¹

His estranged children condemned him publicly on Instagram, calling the attack “racist and dangerous” and “an indefensible act of bigotry induced by the hateful rhetoric he regularly consumed.”¹⁰

Charges and Guilty Plea

The case moved on two tracks. On January 29, 2026, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office filed state charges of one felony count of terroristic threats and one count of fifth-degree assault.¹² The same day, federal prosecutors charged Kazmierczak with forcibly assaulting, opposing, impeding, intimidating, and interfering with a member of Congress during her official duties, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 111(a)(1).⁶ Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said the state charges were filed in part because “a state-level conviction is not subject to a presidential pardon now or in the future.” Those state charges remain pending while Kazmierczak is held in federal custody.

Magistrate Judge David T. Schultz ordered him held without bail on February 3, 2026, finding no release conditions would reasonably assure Omar’s safety or the community’s.¹³

On May 7, 2026, Kazmierczak pleaded guilty to one count of assaulting a United States officer before U.S. District Judge Joan N. Ericksen in the District of Minnesota.¹ He admitted he had planned the assault and that it was motivated by disagreement with Omar’s political views. Asked what he remembered of the incident, Kazmierczak answered, “It’s fuzzy.”¹⁴

How Much Prison Time He Faces

Under 18 U.S.C. § 111, simple assault on a federal officer carries up to one year in prison. When the assault involves physical contact with the victim, the maximum rises to eight years.¹⁵ Because the spray physically reached Omar, Kazmierczak initially faced the eight-year maximum. The plea agreement is expected to reduce that significantly: reporting indicates he may face a sentence of approximately 14 months.¹¹ U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen described the crime as “channeling political hatred into criminal acts.”¹ As of late June 2026, no sentencing date has been set.¹⁶

Omar’s Response

Omar posted on X soon after the attack: “I’m ok. I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work. I don’t let bullies win.”⁹ At a press conference the next day, she tied the incident to political rhetoric, saying that “every time the president of the United States has chosen to use hateful rhetoric to talk about me and the community that I represent, my death threats skyrocket.”³ On the same day as the town hall, President Trump had singled Omar out at a rally in Iowa, telling the crowd that foreigners coming to the United States “have to show they can love our country; they have to be proud — not like Ilhan Omar.”¹⁷

1
U.S. Department of Justice. Minnesota Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar
2
NPR. Ilhan Omar Sprayed at Town Hall
3
ABC News. Man Charges Rep. Ilhan Omar at Town Hall
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ABC7 News. Ilhan Omar Attacked at Minneapolis Town Hall
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The New York Times. Ilhan Omar Spray Anthony J. Kazmierczak Charged
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The New York Times. Anthony Kazmierczak Criminal Complaint
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The Hill. Omar Attacked at Minneapolis Town Hall
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Star Tribune. FBI Takes Over Lead in Investigating Ilhan Omar Spraying
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BBC. Ilhan Omar Attacked at Town Hall
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MPR News. Anthony Kazmierczak, Who Sprayed Vinegar on Rep. Ilhan Omar, Faces Charges
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CBS News Minnesota. Ilhan Omar Anthony Kazmierczak Guilty Plea
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Hennepin County Attorney’s Office. Kazmierczak Charges
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Fox News. Anthony Kazmierczak Order of Detention
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Spectrum News. Assault Guilty Plea, Rep. Ilhan Omar Town Hall Vinegar Sprayed
15
Cornell Law Institute. 18 U.S.C. § 111 – Assaulting, Resisting, or Impeding Certain Officers or Employees
16
CourtListener. United States v. Kazmierczak, 0:26-cr-00058
17
The New York Times. Ilhan Omar Trump Attack