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| - In January 2026, a rumor circulated online claiming that CBS reported the man suspected of attacking Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar during a Minneapolis town hall on Jan. 27 was "actually on Omar's payroll."
The rumor spread on social media platforms like Facebook (archived) and X (archived) following the incident, in which a man, later identified as Anthony Kazmierczak, sprayed Omar with liquid while she was speaking.
The posts claimed CBS revealed that Kazmierczak was employed at Omar's "phony winery," an apparent reference to a winery in Santa Rosa, California, in which Omar's husband, Tim Mynett, holds a financial interest.
U.S. President Donald Trump targeted Omar's financial disclosures the day before the attack, posting on social media that "the DOJ and Congress are looking at 'Congresswoman' Illhan Omar, who left Somalia with NOTHING, and is now reportedly worth more than 44 Million Dollars."
On Jan. 26, 2026, The New York Times reported that a previous U.S. Department of Justice investigation into Omar's finances had "stalled for lack of evidence."
Multiple Snopes readers reached out for clarity on the claim about the supposed CBS report.
There was no evidence that CBS reported that Kazmierczak was employed by Omar.
A search of the CBS News website returned no results making such a claim. A Google search of "Kazmierczak" and "winery" also did not return any relevant results from credible news outlets.
CBS News reported on the attack, but did not include the allegation that Omar employed Kazmierczak.
Rather, the Facebook account (archived) that appeared to originate the story belonged to a self-described comedian named Jonathan Gregory who also claimed he was a "Digital Content Creator for the Trump Administration" employed at conservative media outlet Newsmax.
Gregory has not yet responded to Snopes' request for comment on his post about Kazmierczak, but we have reported on past posts from the same account that indicated satirical origins.
Gregory's lengthy post featured his name in a byline that suggested it was an official Newsmax publication, but a search of the Newsmax website featured no bylines from Gregory. Newsmax's coverage of the attack on Omar did not include any mention of Kazmierczak's alleged employment by her.
In the hours following the Jan. 27 attack on Omar, U.S. President Donald Trump promoted the unsubstantiated claim that Omar staged it.
Gregory's Facebook post concluded, "This farce underscores why Trump is the only leader who can restore integrity to Washington: no more staged distractions, no more fake businesses funding anti-American agendas."
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