MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A senior Transportation Security Administration manager at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport has testified that he received pressure to profile Somali imams and community members visiting his office.

In a testimony Wednesday before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Andrew Rhoades, assistant federal security director for TSA, claims his supervisor had advised him to check the names of potential visitors with the agency’s field intelligence officer.

He also said his supervisor accused him of “going native” after attending a meeting at a local mosque.

“Those in the community in Minneapolis know I would never betray their trust by profiling them,” Rhoades said.

The allegation sparked a call by Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., for an investigation by the Department of Homeland Security.

A TSA spokesperson said in a statement that his agency is reviewing the complaint and doesn’t tolerate racial profiling.

“However, it would be unfair and irresponsible to infer or conclude that profiling is a common TSA practice based upon a single interaction between one employee and his supervisor,” the statement concludes.

Somali leaders said Wednesday the allegations give further credence to longstanding complaints that community members are subject to heavy screening and harassment by the TSA at the Minneapolis airport.

“Even if we’re not flying, we’ll be subject to surveillance and profiling,” said Jaylani Hussein, the head of Council on American-Islamic Relations. “This is exactly what the terrorists want — for the Muslim community to be feared and seen as suspect.”

In 2014, the federal government chose Minneapolis as one of three cities to host a pilot project to counter radical recruitment, an effort led byU.S. Attorney Andrew Luger. Jibril Afyare, a project supporter, said the TSA allegations, if proven, would deal a major blow to efforts at building trust between the community and federal law enforcement agencies.

“This really undermines our continuing cooperation and collaboration with our government, whether it’s TSA, FBI or the U.S. attorney’s office,” he said.

Luger’s office declined to comment on the allegations before the investigation is complete.