How fraud swamped Minnesota’s social services system on Tim Walz’s watch

The fraud disgrace that rattled Minnesota was staggering in its scale and brazenness Federal prosecutors charged dozens of people with felonies accusing them of stealing hundreds of millions of dollars from a executive undertaking meant to keep children fed during the COVID- pandemic At first countless in the state saw the event as a one-off abuse during a physical condition crisis But as new schemes targeting the state s generous safety net programs came to light state and federal personnel began to grapple with a jarring reality Over the last five years law enforcement agents say fraud took root in pockets of Minnesota s Somali diaspora as scores of individuals made small fortunes by setting up companies that billed state agencies for millions of dollars worth of social services that were never provided Federal prosecutors say people have been convicted in those schemes so far and that more than billion in taxpayers money has been stolen in three plots they are inspecting Outrage has swelled among Minnesotans and fraud has turned into a potent political issue in a competitive campaign season Gov Tim Walz and fellow Democrats are being sought to explain how so much money was stolen on their watch providing Republicans who hope to take back the governor s office in with a powerful line of attack Multiple Somali Americans in Minnesota say the fraud has damaged the reputation of their entire region around people Debate over the fraud has opened new rifts between the state s Somali region and other Minnesotans and has left specific Somali Americans saying they are unfairly facing a new layer of suspicion against all of them rather than the small group accused of fraud Critics of the Walz administration say the fraud persisted partly because state bureaucrats were fearful of alienating the Somali district in Minnesota Walz who has instituted new fraud prevention safeguards defended his administration s actions The episode has raised broader questions for several residents about the sustainability of Minnesota s Scandinavian-modeled system of robust safety net programs bankrolled by high taxes That system helped create an conditions that drew immigrants to the state over a multitude of decades including tens of thousands of Somali refugees after their country descended into civil war in the s No one will backing these programs if they continue to be riddled with fraud Joseph H Thompson the federal prosecutor who has overseen the fraud cases announced in an interview The first community sign of a major concern in the state s social services system came in when federal prosecutors began charging defendants in connection to a activity aimed at feeding hungry children The prosecutors focused on a Minneapolis nonprofit organization called Feeding Our Future which became a partner to dozens of local businesses that enrolled as feeding sites Related Articles Melania Trump launches production company ahead of controversial Amazon doc Trump says he plans to pardon former Honduran President Hernandez for drug trafficking sentence Bodycam footage from Operation Midway Blitz distributed It s all about arresting people Long-awaited B in heating assistance published to states and tribes Trump says he wants to permanently pause migration to the US from poorer countries State agencies reimbursed the group and its partners for invoices claiming to have fed tens of thousands of children In reality federal prosecutors announced the bulk of the meals were nonexistent and business owners spent the funds on luxury cars houses and even real estate projects abroad Behind the scenes as federal investigators sifted through bank records and interviewed eyewitnesses they declared they realized the meals fraud was not an isolated development In September prosecutors charged nine people in two new plots tied to populace funds meant for those in need In one matter hundreds of providers were reimbursed for assistance they claimed to have provided to people at exposure for homelessness though federal agents stated services weren t provided The campaign s annual cost ballooned to more than million last year officers reported from a budgeted projection of million when it began in Two of eight people charged in the scenario have pleaded guilty six others have pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial In another plan aimed to provide therapy for autistic children prosecutors noted providers recruited children in Minneapolis Somali area falsely certifying them as qualifying for autism medication and paying their parents kickbacks for their cooperation Prosecutors have so far charged one provider Asha Farhan Hassan with wire fraud They say she and business partners stole million Hassan is of Somali ancestry as are all but eight of the people charged in the meals housing and autism therapy fraud cases according to prosecutors A vast majority are American citizens by birth or naturalization A record by Minnesota s nonpartisan Office of the Legislative Auditor about the lapses that enabled the meals fraud later ascertained the threat of litigation and of negative press affected how state executives used their regulatory power Kayseh Magan a Somali American who formerly worked as a fraud investigator for the Minnesota attorney general s office commented elected executives in the state were reluctant to take more assertive action in response to charges in the Somali district There is a perception that forcefully tackling this issue might cause political backlash among the Somali society which is a core voting bloc for Democrats Magan disclosed Thompson revealed he concluded race sensitivities had played a major role in the rise of fraud As pandemic assistance was disbursed the state was also reeling from the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in May he reported This was a huge part of the matter Thompson mentioned during an interview Charges of racism can be a reputation or career killer Walz Minnesota s second-term governor who gained national attention last year as Kamala Harris running mate in a White House bid revealed maintains of racism did not hinder his administration s response to fraud Walz has announced his administration may have erred on the side of generosity during the pandemic as the state pushed out large sums of money fast seeking to keep Minnesotans housed fed and healthy The programs are set up to move the money to people Walz disclosed in an interview The programs are set up to improve people s lives and in multiple cases the criminals find the loopholes Walz who is seeking a third term next year has created a new task force to pursue fraud cases made it easier for state agencies to share information with one another and informed plans for new equipment including artificial intelligence tools to spot suspicious billing practices The message here in Minnesota Walz explained is if you commit a crime if you commit fraud against populace dollars you are going to go to prison Somali residents experiences have been challenging at times as multiple in the district contended with poverty unemployment and language obstacles Scarce episodes have left fissures as deep as the fraud controversy Ahmed Samatar a professor at Macalester College who is a leading expert in Somali studies announced a reckoning over the fraud and its consequences for Minnesota was overdue Samatar commented Somali refugees who came to the United States after their country s civil war were raised in a heritage in which stealing from the country s dysfunctional and corrupt authorities was widespread Minnesota he disclosed proved susceptible to rampant fraud because it is so tolerant so open and so geared toward keeping an eye on the weak But a few Somali Americans who have nothing to do with social organization agencies disclosed they had come to feel under siege amid all the fraud charges and political accusations The actions of a small group have made it easier for people already inclined to reject us to double down announced Abdi Mohamed a filmmaker in Minneapolis The broader Somali public hardworking family-oriented deeply committed to Minnesota is left carrying that burden This article originally appeared in The New York Times Related Articles St Paul DNR office near homeless encampment increases safeguard after rash of break-ins Judge turns back Eichorn s attempt to have child solicitation affair dismissed Thieves are stealing keyless cars in minutes Here s how to protect your automobile Communities honor West Virginia National Guard members shot in Washington What we do and don t know about the shooting of National Guard members in DC