A legally blind 'outlaw biker' from Kansas has been charged with threatening to kill US Representative Ilhan Omar. Adam Lee Osborn, 60, of Wichita, posted on Facebook on 23 January: 'I’m going to kill Ilhan Omar!' according to a probable cause affidavit.
When questioned by investigators the next day, Osborn used slurs against Omar and said 'someone needs to do something to 'em'. He also referred to New York Mayor Eric Adams, then mayor-elect, saying 'someone needed to take his sorry a** out too'. Osborn told police he hated Omar 'due to her disrespect for the United States and using God’s name in vain'.
Six days before the threat, Osborn posted a photo of himself holding an assault-style rifle and a high-capacity magazine. In other posts, he warned 'Ilhan Omar/you’re dead!' and shared praise for Donald Trump, railed against immigrants, and wrote 'If illegals can come here unimpeded, I can kill them unimpeded'.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation traced the Facebook account to Osborn after a voluntary emergency disclosure request. He was located at an inpatient healthcare facility and admitted to making the posts. Osborn does not yet have a lawyer listed in court records.
Seamus Hughes, an extremism expert, said: 'The ease of which some Americans freely wish death on public servants should be concerning for us all. There continues to be a concerning number of people in this country who think there are no consequences for encouraging violence over political disagreements.'
