Minnesota Fraud Statistics in US 2025 | Key Facts

Minnesota Fraud in US 2025

Minnesota has captured national attention as one story dominates headlines as 2025 draws to a close—the massive fraud crisis that federal prosecutors estimate could top $9 billion. What began as isolated investigations in 2021 has exploded into a comprehensive federal probe spanning multiple government assistance programs throughout the state. The scandal reached fever pitch in late December 2025 when a viral social media video by YouTuber Nick Shirley, amplified by Elon Musk, Vice President J.D. Vance, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, thrust Minnesota’s fraud problem into the center of national conversation. The Trump administration responded by pausing federal funding to child care in Minnesota, with President Trump calling the state “a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity.” The scope of fraudulent activity has prompted unprecedented federal action, with investigations spanning child nutrition programs, housing assistance, healthcare services, autism therapy, and developmental disability programs across more than a dozen social service systems.

The Minnesota fraud in US 2025 encompasses a complex web of schemes that exploited various programs designed to support vulnerable populations. Federal law enforcement first probed multimillion-dollar fraud schemes in 2021, leading to federal charges against 92 people with 62 convicted and counting as of December 2025. The largest single case, the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme, involved $250 million in stolen federal funds meant to feed underprivileged children during the COVID-19 pandemic, now including upwards of 75 defendants. FBI Director Kash Patel described this case as “just the tip of a very large iceberg.” Housing Stabilization Services spending ballooned from an estimated $2.6 million annually to over $100 million before the program was shut down due to large-scale fraud. Federal prosecutors charged 13 individuals across housing fraud cases, including two Pennsylvanians engaged in what prosecutors termed “fraud tourism.” Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson stated that 14 Medicaid services are under audit and deemed high-risk for fraud, with investigations continuing across nutrition, housing, behavioral health, and autism therapy programs.

Key Minnesota Fraud Statistics in the US 2025

Data compiled from U.S. Department of Justice press releases, Federal Trade Commission Consumer Sentinel Network 2024 Data Book, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota announcements, and Minnesota Department of Human Services reports.

The Minnesota fraud statistics in the US 2025 reveal a crisis that extends far beyond a single program or scheme. Federal charges have been filed against 92 people with 62 convicted as of December 2025, representing one of the largest multi-program fraud prosecutions in recent American history. The $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud represents the largest pandemic-era fraud scheme prosecuted in the United States, with upwards of 75 defendants facing federal charges. FBI Director Kash Patel emphasized this case is “just the tip of a very large iceberg,” signaling the breadth of fraudulent activity across Minnesota’s social service landscape. Federal prosecutors have charged defendants with wire fraud, money laundering, bribery, and conspiracy, with investigations uncovering that stolen funds were used to purchase luxury vehicles, real estate across multiple states and countries, and fund international travel. The Housing Stabilization Services program, designed to help seniors and people with disabilities find housing, saw spending explode from an estimated $2.6 million annually to over $100 million before being shut down due to widespread fraud discovered in summer 2025. Minnesota consumers separately reported $144.6 million in fraud losses to the Federal Trade Commission in 2024, ranking the state 39th nationally for fraud reports but highlighting the pervasiveness of fraudulent activity.

The data underscores a systemic vulnerability in Minnesota’s oversight of federal assistance programs. Federal investigators have identified 14 Medicaid services as high-risk for fraud, with Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson confirming comprehensive audits are underway. The $9 billion estimate provided by federal prosecutors encompasses fraud across multiple programs including child nutrition, housing assistance, autism therapy services, home health care, and behavioral health programs, though Governor Tim Walz has disputed this figure while acknowledging the fraud problem could stretch into the billions. President Trump’s response included calling Minnesota “a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity” and freezing approximately $185 million in federal child care funding. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced sweeping changes requiring states to submit justification and receipt or photo evidence before receiving Medicaid-supported daycare funds. The crisis has prompted House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer to open an investigation and announce plans for hearings with testimony from Governor Walz and other officials. Federal investigators told CBS News that child care is only “vaguely” a priority, with attention and resources focused on more than a dozen other social services programs including nutrition, housing, and behavioral health.

Ongoing Investigations and Federal Response in the US 2025

Source: Minnesota Department of Human Services, Department of Homeland Security, Governor Walz Executive Order 25-10, U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

The ongoing investigations and federal response in the US 2025 have intensified dramatically in the final weeks of December, with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announcing Monday that federal agents are on the ground in Minneapolis “conducting a massive investigation on child care and other rampant fraud.” Homeland Security Investigations teams deployed to Minnesota alongside FBI agents to execute search warrants, conduct interviews, and build additional criminal cases beyond the 92 people already charged across multiple fraud schemes. Federal investigators have identified 14 Medicaid services as high-risk for fraud, triggering comprehensive audits and prepayment reviews designed to prevent fraudulent claims from being paid before services are verified. The Minnesota Department of Human Services contracted with Optum, a third-party vendor, to conduct prepayment reviews that add an extra verification step between when providers submit claims and when payments are issued.

Minnesota state agencies have implemented sweeping changes under Governor Walz’s Executive Order 25-10, issued September 17, 2025, which established what officials described as a zero-tolerance policy for fraud and the most comprehensive overhaul of program integrity in state history. The Minnesota Department of Human Services terminated 761 provider agencies in fall 2025 for inactivity, along with over 96,000 individual providers in spring 2025 who had not billed Medicaid in the past year. These mass disenrollments aimed to create a clearer picture of Minnesota’s Medicaid landscape and better detect irregularities by removing inactive entities. Already in 2025, DHS imposed more than twice as many payment withholds as in recent years, stopping Medicaid dollars from continuing to fraudulent providers. Since 2020, DHS has conducted over 3,000 investigations and referred over 500 cases to law enforcement, identifying more than $50 million for recovery. The House Oversight Committee investigation continues with Chairman James Comer issuing document requests and scheduling hearings to examine how such extensive fraud occurred under state oversight. The Treasury Department investigation into potential money flows to Somalia-based terrorist organization al-Shabaab remains active, though federal investigators.

Feeding Our Future Fraud in the US 2025

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, FBI.gov, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division

The Feeding Our Future fraud in the US 2025 represents the most extensive pandemic relief fraud scheme prosecuted in American history, with federal prosecutors securing charges against upwards of 75 defendants with multiple convictions secured as of late December 2025. FBI Director Kash Patel emphasized the case is “just the tip of a very large iceberg,” signaling the magnitude of fraudulent schemes across Minnesota. The scheme centered on Feeding Our Future, a Minnesota nonprofit founded in 2016 that claimed to distribute meals to underprivileged children through the Federal Child Nutrition Program. Federal investigators discovered that defendants falsely claimed to have served 91 million meals between 2020 and 2022, when in reality few or no meals were provided at most sites. The organization grew explosively during the pandemic, increasing from receiving $3.4 million in federal funds in 2019 to nearly $200 million in 2021. Founder Aimee Bock was convicted earlier in 2025 on multiple federal charges including four counts of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of bribery, and one count of conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery following a six-week trial.

The scheme involved creating more than 250 Federal Child Nutrition Program sites throughout Minnesota, many of which claimed to serve thousands of children daily within days or weeks of formation. Defendants submitted fraudulent meal count sheets, fake attendance rosters with fabricated names and ages of children, and inflated invoices to receive maximum federal reimbursements. Investigators documented instances where sites claimed to serve more children than the total population of the cities where they operated. The stolen $250 million was used to purchase luxury vehicles, residential and commercial real estate in Minnesota, Ohio, and Kentucky, property in Kenya and Turkey, and to fund international travel and lavish lifestyles. Early on, Minnesota officials questioned some of Feeding Our Future’s filings and slowed approvals of reimbursements, prompting the nonprofit to file a lawsuit accusing the state of racial discrimination. The state auditor’s office found that “the threat of legal consequences and negative media attention” affected the state’s decision-making process about regulatory action against Feeding Our Future. The first trial in 2024 was disrupted by a shocking jury tampering attempt, in which co-conspirators attempted to bribe a juror with $120,000 in cash to vote for acquittal, leading to additional federal charges against five individuals who have since pleaded guilty.

Housing Stabilization Services Fraud in the US 2025

Source: Minnesota Department of Human Services, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, U.S. Department of Justice press releases

The Housing Stabilization Services fraud in the US 2025 resulted in state officials completely shutting down the program after discovering what they described as “large-scale fraud” that had caused spending to balloon to over $100 million in 2024 despite initial projections of just $2.6 million annually. The Housing Stabilization Services program was designed to help seniors and people with disabilities find and maintain housing through Minnesota’s Medicaid program. Federal prosecutors determined the program was particularly susceptible to fraud because it intentionally maintained “low barriers to entry” and imposed few record-keeping requirements to encourage participation. Defendants enrolled as providers and submitted millions in fake and inflated bills for services never rendered, exploiting the program’s minimal oversight structure.

Federal prosecutors charged 13 defendants across two waves of indictments in 2025, with eight individuals charged in September and five more in December. The cases revealed that defendants billed for services not provided and operated agencies while inflating or completely fabricating service records. Particularly striking were charges against two Pennsylvania residents with no apparent connections to Minnesota who allegedly traveled to the state specifically to commit fraud, in what prosecutors termed “fraud tourism.” The defendants allegedly hired unqualified staff, submitted false claims indicating services were provided when they were not, and in some cases paid kickbacks to enroll individuals in the program. The Minnesota Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit partnered with the FBI, Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and federal prosecutors throughout investigations that included executing search warrants, conducting interviews, and analyzing billing data that revealed the massive scope of fraudulent activity.

Autism Services Fraud in the US 2025

Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, U.S. Department of Justice

The autism services fraud in the US 2025 involved defendants who exploited Minnesota’s Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention program, which provides Medicaid-funded behavioral therapy services to children under age 21 with autism spectrum disorder. Federal prosecutors charged Asha Farah Hassan, owner of Smart Therapy LLC, with defrauding the EIDBI program by billing for services not rendered, inflating service hours, and paying kickbacks to parents who agreed to enroll their children. Hassan allegedly hired unqualified “behavioral technicians” who lacked proper credentials and training, then submitted false claims to Minnesota’s Medical Assistance program indicating these staff had worked directly with enrolled children when services were either minimal or never provided at all.

The kickback scheme proved particularly egregious, with prosecutors alleging that defendants paid parents as much as $1,500 to enroll their children in the program, essentially bribing families to participate so the agencies could bill Medicaid for fraudulent services. Abdinajib Hassan Yussuf, who operated Star Autism Center LLC, faced similar charges for defrauding the EIDBI program through comparable methods. Notably, Asha Farah Hassan was also charged in the separate Feeding Our Future fraud scheme for running a fraudulent food distribution site, demonstrating how some defendants operated multiple fraudulent enterprises simultaneously. Hassan pleaded guilty to wire fraud in December 2025. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson emphasized that the autism services case “is not an isolated scheme,” noting that 14 Medicaid services are currently under audit and deemed high-risk for fraud. The Minnesota Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit partnered with federal law enforcement to execute search warrants, conduct interviews, and build cases against defendants who exploited vulnerable families seeking critical therapeutic services for their children.

Consumer Fraud Losses in Minnesota in the US 2025

Source: Federal Trade Commission Consumer Sentinel Network 2024 Data Book, FTC.gov official reports, Minnesota Attorney General’s Office

The consumer fraud losses in Minnesota in the US 2025 totaled $144.6 million according to Federal Trade Commission data for 2024, with Minnesota residents filing 31,370 fraud reports through the FTC’s Consumer Sentinel Network. While Minnesota ranked 39th nationally for fraud reports per capita and 41st for identity theft reports, the substantial dollar losses underscore the financial impact on residents across the state. The most commonly reported scam category was impostor scams, where criminals falsely claim to be romantic interests, government officials, relatives in distress, well-known businesses, or technical support representatives. Identity theft and issues with credit bureaus represented the second most reported category, while online shopping problems including delivery scams and fraudulent websites ranked third among Minnesota consumer complaints.

These consumer fraud statistics exist separate from the massive government program fraud investigations but demonstrate the broader vulnerability of Minnesota residents to fraudulent schemes. Investment fraud emerged as a major concern, with scammers increasingly using cryptocurrency and fake investment platforms to defraud victims. Email was identified as the most common method scammers used to contact Minnesota residents, followed by phone calls and text messages. The $144.6 million in reported consumer losses does not include the hundreds of millions in government program fraud, highlighting how fraud impacts both individual Minnesotans and taxpayer-funded assistance programs. In response to these trends, the 2025 Minnesota Legislature created a Consumer Fraud Restitution Fund, allocating up to $5 million annually to compensate fraud victims using civil penalty money collected by the Attorney General’s Office from enforcement actions against fraudsters, making Minnesota the first state in the nation to establish such a fund.

Federal Criminal Charges in Minnesota Fraud Cases in the US 2025

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, IRS Criminal Investigation

The federal criminal charges in Minnesota fraud cases in the US 2025 encompass a wide range of serious felonies prosecuted by both federal and state authorities. Wire fraud remains the most prevalent charge, applied when defendants use electronic communications or interstate wire transfers to execute fraudulent schemes, carrying penalties of up to 20 years in federal prison per count. Multiple defendants face conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges, reflecting the coordinated nature of these schemes where groups worked together to defraud government programs. Money laundering charges target defendants who concealed the proceeds of their fraudulent activity by moving funds through shell companies, purchasing assets, or transferring money overseas, also carrying sentences up to 20 years in prison.

Federal programs bribery charges emerged in cases where defendants paid kickbacks to parents, staff, or others to facilitate fraud, while racketeering charges under federal RICO statutes apply to defendants who operated ongoing criminal enterprises. The attempted jury bribery during the first Feeding Our Future trial resulted in five additional defendants facing federal charges after co-conspirators attempted to influence the trial outcome with $120,000 in cash. State-level prosecutions by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit have resulted in charges including theft by swindle and racketeering under state statutes. Courts have imposed substantial restitution orders requiring defendants to repay stolen funds, with amounts ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars per defendant. Asset forfeiture proceedings have resulted in the seizure of luxury vehicles, real estate, and other property purchased with stolen taxpayer dollars. Sentences handed down in 2024 and 2025 have ranged from three and a half years to twelve years in federal prison, reflecting the severity of the crimes and the amounts stolen.

Minnesota Attorney General Fraud Prosecutions in the US 2025

Source: Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, Minnesota Department of Human Services

The Minnesota Attorney General fraud prosecutions in the US 2025 demonstrate the state’s aggressive response to fraudulent schemes, with the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit winning the highest number of convictions for provider fraud compared with similarly sized states during the 2020-2022 period according to a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General audit. The MFCU operates with an annual budget of approximately $6.7 million, with 75 percent funded by federal grants totaling over $5 million and the remaining 25 percent approximately $1.7 million provided by state funds. Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office has prosecuted major cases throughout 2025, including charging Chavis Willis with racketeering and theft by swindle for stealing $7.3 million through a Medicaid-funded home health agency he operated despite being legally barred from such businesses due to prior felony convictions.

Another significant prosecution involved Abdifatah Yusuf, convicted in August 2025 of bilking the Medicaid program out of $7.2 million through his agency Promise Health Services LLC, which operated for years out of a mailbox without any physical office while claiming to provide home and community-based services. The Attorney General’s office also filed consumer protection lawsuits against unlicensed contractors who defrauded Minnesota families out of at least $1.6 million by taking substantial prepayments for home renovation services and performing little to no work. Throughout 2025, the MFCU partnered extensively with federal law enforcement including the FBI and HHS Office of Inspector General to execute dozens of search warrants, conduct interviews with witnesses and targets, analyze billing data, and build cases that resulted in federal indictments across Housing Stabilization Services, autism therapy, and other Medicaid programs. Despite the MFCU’s strong track record, Attorney General Ellison’s legislative requests for additional funding to hire seven new investigators and expand the unit’s authority were denied by the Minnesota Legislature, even though 75 percent of the requested funding would have come from federal sources.

Day Care Fraud Allegations and Federal Response in the US 2025

Source: CBS News investigative analysis, Minnesota Department of Human Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, state licensing records

The day care fraud allegations and federal response in the US 2025 began when YouTuber Nick Shirley posted a viral video in late December 2025 showing him visiting federally supported child care centers around Minneapolis and finding no children present at several locations. The video drew tens of millions of views and was amplified by prominent figures including Elon Musk, Vice President J.D. Vance, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, thrusting Minnesota’s fraud crisis into the national spotlight. Shirley alleged that nearly a dozen day care centers were not actually providing any service and suggested owners were pocketing taxpayer funds. The video’s impact was immediate and severe, prompting the Trump administration to announce it was pausing federal funding to child care in Minnesota. President Trump called Minnesota “a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity,” while the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced sweeping changes requiring states to submit justification and receipt or photo evidence before receiving money for Medicaid-supported daycares.

CBS News conducted an independent analysis and visited several day care centers mentioned by Shirley, finding that all but two have active licenses according to state records. All active locations had been visited by state regulators within the last six months, with one subjected to an unannounced inspection as recently as December 4, 2025. The CBS News review found dozens of citations related to safety, cleanliness, equipment, and staff training requirements, but there was no recorded evidence of fraud in the inspection reports. One day care director responded by sharing security footage showing people dropping off young children the same day that Shirley arrived and claimed the facility was empty. Federal investigators told CBS News that child care is only “vaguely” a priority for prosecutors, with attention and resources instead focused on more than a dozen other social services programs in Minnesota including nutrition, housing, and behavioral health. The freezing of approximately $185 million in federal child care funding has raised concerns among legitimate day care providers who warn that withholding support could devastate functioning facilities serving Minnesota families.

Political Controversy and Community Impact in the US 2025

Source: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center 2024 Annual Report, FBI.gov, IC3.gov official statistics

The FBI Internet Crime statistics relevant to Minnesota in 2025 provide national context for understanding cyber-enabled fraud that impacts Minnesota residents alongside the state-specific government program fraud cases. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center received 859,532 complaints in 2024, with reported losses exceeding $16.6 billion nationwide, representing a 33 percent increase from 2023. Cyber-enabled fraud, where criminals use the internet or technology to commit fraudulent activities, accounted for $13.7 billion in losses, representing 83 percent of all reported losses to the IC3. Investment fraud caused the highest losses at $6.5 billion, with cryptocurrency-related scams particularly devastating as consumers lost $9.3 billion to crypto fraud, a 66 percent increase from the previous year.

Business Email Compromise remained the second most profitable cybercrime category with $2.77 billion in reported losses, while Americans over age 60 suffered $4.8 billion in losses, a 43 percent increase from 2023, with more than 147,000 elder fraud reports filed. The FBI’s Recovery Asset Team, which coordinates the Financial Fraud Kill Chain with financial institutions to freeze fraudulent transactions, handled 3,020 complaints in 2024 and successfully froze $560 million with a 66 percent success rate. The average loss per incident increased substantially from $14,197 in 2023 to $19,372 in 2024, indicating that fraud is becoming not only more prevalent but also more damaging financially. These national statistics demonstrate that Minnesota’s fraud crisis exists within a broader epidemic of both cyber-enabled consumer fraud and systematic exploitation of government programs, requiring coordinated federal, state, and local law enforcement responses to protect taxpayers and vulnerable populations.

Disclaimer: This research report is compiled from publicly available sources. While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is given as to the completeness or reliability of the information. We accept no liability for any errors, omissions, losses, or damages of any kind arising from the use of this report.

Email ID:

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

Email

Email *

SUBSCRIBE