Federal Homeland Security launched a major fraud investigation in Minneapolis, building on years of probes into a $300 million COVID-19 relief scam. Officials allege that over half of $18 billion in federal funds in Minnesota since 2018 may have been stolen, with most defendants identified as Somali Americans, sparking heightened tensions between state and federal authorities.
Federal Homeland Security officials, led by Secretary Kristi Noem, initiated a significant fraud investigation in Minneapolis. This action follows years of scrutiny, including the $300 million Feeding Our Future scheme, which resulted in 57 convictions for exploiting a state-run, federally funded program intended to provide food for children during the COVID-19 pandemic. A federal prosecutor recently alleged that potentially half or more of the approximately $18 billion in federal funds supporting 14 programs in Minnesota since 2018 might have been stolen, with a majority of the defendants identified as Somali Americans. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has vowed that fraud will not be tolerated and pledged continued collaboration with federal partners. However, President Donald Trump has criticized Walz’s administration over the fraud cases. DHS Secretary Noem posted a video on X showing officers entering an unidentified business and questioning an individual, stating they were conducting a "massive investigation on childcare and other rampant fraud." U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) emphasized that the American people deserve answers on how their taxpayer money is used and "ARRESTS when abuse is found." FBI Director Kash Patel also announced a surge of personnel and investigative resources to Minnesota to dismantle large-scale fraud schemes, describing previous arrests as "just the tip of a very large iceberg." Tensions have been high between state and federal enforcement, particularly as the Trump administration's immigration crackdown has focused on the large Somali community in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Minnesota, 82 of the 92 defendants involved in schemes related to child nutrition, housing services, and autism programs are Somali Americans. Governor Walz’s spokesperson, Claire Lancaster, affirmed that the governor has been actively working for years to "crack down on fraud," seeking increased authority from the Legislature for aggressive action. Walz has supported criminal prosecutions and implemented measures such as strengthening oversight and hiring an outside firm to audit payments to high-risk programs.
