A pair of companies owned by Tim Mynett, the husband of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), saw their reported valuations rise sharply in recent years, increasing more than twentyfold in less than a year, according to congressional financial disclosures. The growth has prompted questions about how the companies achieved such rapid gains.
The disclosures come as Minnesota faces ongoing investigations into alleged fraud involving government programs, with authorities estimating potential losses could exceed $9 billion.
Financial filings related to Omar’s assets indicate a significant increase in the reported value of Mynett’s business holdings since 2020, Fox News reported.
Omar reported a sharp increase in the value of Rose Lake Capital LLC, a firm co-founded by her husband, Tim Mynett, according to her 2024 congressional financial disclosure.
Omar listed the value of Rose Lake Capital at between $5 million and $25 million in 2024. In her 2023 disclosure, she reported the company’s value in the lowest category, between $1 and $1,000. Congressional disclosure forms require lawmakers to report assets in broad ranges rather than precise figures, but even under the most conservative assumptions, the reported valuation reflects a dramatic year-over-year increase.
Rose Lake Capital’s website describes the firm as facilitating work in deal-making, mergers and acquisitions, banking, politics, and diplomacy.
The company has listed several high-profile figures among its personnel, including Adam Ereli, a lobbyist who previously served as U.S. ambassador to Bahrain during the Obama administration. Archived versions of the website also indicate past involvement by former Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), as well as former Democratic National Committee officials William Derrough and Alex Hoffman.
Mynett, Omar’s third husband, co-founded Rose Lake Capital in 2022.
Amid increased public scrutiny of Omar over large-scale fraud investigations in Minnesota and questions about whether she could have benefited indirectly, Rose Lake Capital has removed the names and biographies of its team members from its website. It is not clear whether any of the previously listed individuals remain affiliated with the firm.
Another company connected to Omar’s financial disclosures, ESTCRU LLC, also reported a sharp increase in valuation. The winery, registered in Santa Rosa, was listed as being worth between $1 million and $5 million in Omar’s 2024 disclosure, compared with an estimated value of $15,000 to $50,000 the previous year.
Despite the higher reported valuation, the company’s online portal for purchasing wine does not appear to be functional. The winery also shows little recent public activity, with its last social media post dated January 2023. Also, the phone number on the winery’s website is non-operational, Fox noted.
The couple’s growing wealth comes as state and federal authorities uncover vast fraud networks in Minnesota, many tied to Somali-run nonprofits in Omar’s district.
“This reeks of political privilege,” said Paul Kamenar of the National Legal and Policy Center. “Omar entered Congress broke and now she’s worth tens of millions while her husband’s firm erases its records. She owes voters an explanation.”
At the center of the scandal is Feeding Our Future, a nonprofit accused of siphoning pandemic aid funds meant for children. Federal prosecutors allege the money was diverted to luxury homes, cars, and overseas real estate.
Omar has not been charged, but three individuals convicted in the scheme donated to her campaign, including Salim Ahmed Said, the owner of Safari Restaurant, where she filmed a 2020 video praising the food program that later became a fraud hub. Another associate, Guhaad Hashi Said, worked for Omar’s campaign and pleaded guilty to stealing $3.2 million through a fake youth meal site.
FBI Director Kash Patel announced a “major expansion” of the bureau’s investigation into fraud across Minnesota. Patel said agents are targeting “large-scale schemes exploiting federal programs” and that the bureau has “already exposed a $250 million network tied to Feeding Our Future.”
