Not Just Minnesota? Buzz About Somali-Linked Fraud Emerges in Two Additional States
Reports and social-media videos claim a pattern of alleged fraud involving Somali‑affiliated child care and home‑health providers in multiple states. A Muckraker.com reporter posted footage from Columbus, Ohio, showing a Somali‑linked daycare that appeared inactive and neighbors saying they’d never seen children enter or leave. independent journalists and reporters in Washington state and Minnesota have made similar on‑teh‑ground visits, encountering empty facilities or uncooperative staff; one Washington reporter said state child‑welfare officials asked for forwarded data. An Ohio attorney quoted by Fox News warned providers had described pressure to join a broader Medicaid fraud scheme, and independent videos circulating online allege large sums-reports cite figures such as $110 million tied to Minneapolis centers and other high billing claims-though these remain allegations under examination. Coverage cites multiple sources (Muckraker.com, The Center Square, Fox News, and independent journalists) and has prompted calls from commentators for audits and official review.
More evidence is coming forth that suggests that the alleged fraud uncovered in Minnesota, particularly among the Somali community, may not just be limited to the North Star State.
Anthony Rubin of Muckraker.com, posted a video on social media on Monday showing him inspecting what he described as a Somali-affiliated child care facility in Columbus, Ohio.
In the video, he asks two gentlemen who have a business across the street from it, “Have you ever seen any kids in this place here?”
“I’ve just seen the building itself. I’ve never seen anyone go in the building or come out of the building,” one man answered, noting people generally enter from the back.
Rubin confirmed with the second man, “You’ve never seen anyone come out of there?”
“No, none at all,” he replied.
Rubin can next be seen standing in front of the “Great Minds Learning Academy,” which he said is one of many in Columbus affiliated with the Somali community.
The reporter knocked, and no one answered the door. He then went around back, and there were a couple of cars visible, but no sign of activity.
Rubin noted this was just his first stop, but he planned to visit other locations and see if the situation is the same.
FIRST SIGNS OF MASSIVE POTENTIAL SOMALI FRAUD IN COLUMBUS, OHIO
The first Somali-affiliated daycare facility that we knocked after landing in Columbus, Ohio today did not answer.
A neighbor across the street told us, “I’ve never seen nobody come out the building or go in the… pic.twitter.com/zywy9lPDMw
— Muckraker.com (@realmuckraker) December 30, 2025
Carleen Johnson, a reporter with The Center Square, posted Monday on X, “Just went to four Somali run home daycare centers in Federal Way, WA that receive taxpayer subsidies.
“Just like @nickshirleyy found in MN- there were no children and no one willing to chat with this reporter. They threatened me with police. @waDCYF [Washington State Department of Children, Youth, & Families] wants information forwarded,” she added.
Just went to four Somali run home daycare centers in Federal Way, WA that receive taxpayer subsidies. Just like @nickshirleyy found in MN- there were no children and no one willing to chat with this reporter. They threatened me with police. @waDCYF wants information forwarded.
— Carleen Johnson (@CarleenJohn1970) December 29, 2025
Asked by a social media user if the centers might be closed for the holidays, Johnson responded that it does not appear to be the issue.
I hear what you’re saying, but this is not an issue of being “closed for the holiday”
— Carleen Johnson (@CarleenJohn1970) December 30, 2025
Mehek Cooke, an Ohio attorney and conservative commentator, told Fox News earlier this month, “Minnesota was just the tip of the spear.”
“She said that providers within the Ohio Somali community have confided to her that they have been pressured to join in a ‘massive’ Medicaid fraud scheme that involves doctors ‘rubber stamping’ home healthcare payouts to the family members of elderly individuals for fake medical conditions,” the news outlet reported.
“What we’re seeing in Minneapolis is just a snippet of what’s happening in Ohio,” Cooke asserted.
“I know that everybody wants to make this a Somali issue or a race issue. It’s not. Our waiver system in Ohio was built with compassion. It was built to really help individuals that are struggling and in need, but it’s being looted today,” she said.
🚨 WOW. Ohio attorney Mehek Cooke CONFIRMS MASSIVE fraud in Ohio, another hotbed for Somalis
They run fake “home health” and bill $250,000 PER YEAR, per FAMILY, when no work is actually being done
She says it also happens in PENNSYLVANIA
“Audit America. Audit Ohio now. And I’m… pic.twitter.com/eEiRjdHtpO
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 29, 2025
Last week, independent journalist Nick Shirley posted a 42-minute video that has gone viral of him uncovering what he said was $110 million in fraud allegedly perpetrated through Somali-linked child care centers in Minneapolis.
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