Ilhan Omar Attacked During Minneapolis Town Hall When a Man Charged and Sprayed Her with Unknown Substance

Rep. Ilhan Omar was attacked during a town hall in Minneapolis on Tuesday, Jan. 27.

During her speech, Omar, 43, called for the abolishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the resignation or impeachment of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Near the end of her speech, a man in the front row jumped up and ran towards her before spraying her shirt with a syringe of an unknown, strong-smelling substance, according to C-SPAN footage.

The man was booked into Hennepin County Jail on suspicion of third-degree assault, police told PEOPLE. The Minneapolis Police Department told PEOPLE the suspect was identified as 55-year-old Anthony Kazmierczak.

Several people cried out in concern, with one person alerting the crowd, “He sprayed something,” according to the video.

The man was quickly apprehended by security, tackled to the ground and escorted out of the building, according to the video. Omar’s security and staff offered her the opportunity to conclude the town hall, but the politician continued, saying, “We will continue. These f—ing assholes are not going to get away with it.”

“Just give me 10 minutes. I beg you,” she said in response to the staff requesting she get examined, the video showed. “Please don’t let them have the show.”

“Here’s the reality that people like this ugly man don’t understand,” Omar told the crowd. “We are Minnesota strong, and we will stay resilient in the face of whatever they might throw at us.”

A person in the crowd thanked the congresswoman for staying and completing her remarks, the New York Times reported.

“I learned at a young age you don’t give in to threats,” Omar replied.

“Tonight, a man is in custody after he decided to assault a Member of Congress – an unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice,” the U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement to PEOPLE. “We are grateful for the rapid response of onsite security and our local law enforcement partners. We are now working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society.”

PEOPLE also reached out to Omar’s office.

“This kind of behavior will not be tolerated in our city,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said after the incident, per The New York Times. “Violence and intimidation have no place in Minneapolis. We can disagree without putting people at risk.”

Tensions have been on the rise in Minnesota since President Donald Trump‘s administration deployed ICE and other federal agents to the state. In recent weeks, two citizens – 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti and 37-year-old mother of three Renee Good – have been killed by federal agents, sparking demonstrations in Minnesota and across the country.

“They’re gonna make mistakes sometimes,” Trump said in reference to the killing of Good on Jan. 20. “ICE is gonna be too rough with somebody or- you know, they’re dealing with rough people. They’re gonna make a mistake sometimes. It can happen.”

Earlier Tuesday, Trump told reporters he did not think Pretti was “acting as an assassin,” but said he believed Pretti was wrong for carrying a gun to a protest. “You can’t have guns, you can’t walk in with guns,” he said, later adding, “It is a very unfortunate incident.”

Rep. Ilhan Omar was attacked during a town hall in Minneapolis on Tuesday, Jan. 27.

During her speech, Omar, 43, called for the abolishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the resignation or impeachment of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Near the end of her speech, a man in the front row jumped up and ran towards her before spraying her shirt with a syringe of an unknown, strong-smelling substance, according to C-SPAN footage.

The man was booked into Hennepin County Jail on suspicion of third-degree assault, police told PEOPLE. The Minneapolis Police Department told PEOPLE the suspect was identified as 55-year-old Anthony Kazmierczak.

Several people cried out in concern, with one person alerting the crowd, “He sprayed something,” according to the video.

The man was quickly apprehended by security, tackled to the ground and escorted out of the building, according to the video. Omar’s security and staff offered her the opportunity to conclude the town hall, but the politician continued, saying, “We will continue. These f—ing assholes are not going to get away with it.”

“Just give me 10 minutes. I beg you,” she said in response to the staff requesting she get examined, the video showed. “Please don’t let them have the show.”

“Here’s the reality that people like this ugly man don’t understand,” Omar told the crowd. “We are Minnesota strong, and we will stay resilient in the face of whatever they might throw at us.”

A person in the crowd thanked the congresswoman for staying and completing her remarks, the New York Times reported.

“I learned at a young age you don’t give in to threats,” Omar replied.

“Tonight, a man is in custody after he decided to assault a Member of Congress – an unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice,” the U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement to PEOPLE. “We are grateful for the rapid response of onsite security and our local law enforcement partners. We are now working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society.”

PEOPLE also reached out to Omar’s office.

“This kind of behavior will not be tolerated in our city,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said after the incident, per The New York Times. “Violence and intimidation have no place in Minneapolis. We can disagree without putting people at risk.”

Tensions have been on the rise in Minnesota since President Donald Trump‘s administration deployed ICE and other federal agents to the state. In recent weeks, two citizens – 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti and 37-year-old mother of three Renee Good – have been killed by federal agents, sparking demonstrations in Minnesota and across the country.

“They’re gonna make mistakes sometimes,” Trump said in reference to the killing of Good on Jan. 20. “ICE is gonna be too rough with somebody or- you know, they’re dealing with rough people. They’re gonna make a mistake sometimes. It can happen.”

Earlier Tuesday, Trump told reporters he did not think Pretti was “acting as an assassin,” but said he believed Pretti was wrong for carrying a gun to a protest. “You can’t have guns, you can’t walk in with guns,” he said, later adding, “It is a very unfortunate incident.”