Fraud in Minnesomalia

[Derec]

Asks the author if “Minnesomalia” without a hint of irony.

Do you prefer Minnedishu?

 

[laughing dog]

I have little doubt there has been fraud in these programs. But given the debasement of the FBI and the DOJ, along with the hyper politicization of federal DAs, I doubt the amount of the publicized amount of fraud attributed to Somalis.

The number of Somalis in Mn are relatively small - around 60,000 - concentrated in the Twin Cities area, which is a DFL stronghold. There is little political gain to the DFL to allow fraud via neglect because it harms the outstate DFL politicians. So I view the assertions that there was deliberate inattention or blind eye to this with skepticism.

 

[laughing dog]

Asks the author if “Minnesomalia” without a hint of irony.

Do you prefer Minnedishu?

Doubling down with attempts of racist humor magnifies the irony.

 

[Don2 (Don1 Revised)]

It's a state run program even if it is federally funded.

Yeah, I wrote that. The funds are administered by the states because that is where the recipients are. BUT these are federal crimes and there is an Inspector General at the federal level as well as departments and FBI who investigate these things. That isn't to say that investigations cannot happen at the state level. States also have investigative bodies, but again these are federal crimes and no one can claim they were stopped from speaking to federal agencies. Any anonymous person on social media claiming a conspiracy and being amplified by right-wing news (NY Post, Fox News, OAN, etc) could simply have contacted the FBI which is what happened....except we do not know if these alleged anonymous people on social media are even real or were involved. I think probably not, since they complained about suppression in 2023 and the fraudsters had been investigated since 2021 and raided in 2022.

 

[Derec]

Doubling down with attempts of racist humor magnifies the irony.

Somalis are a nationality, not a race.

 

[Derec]

Any anonymous person on social media claiming a conspiracy and being amplified by right-wing news (NY Post, Fox News, OAN, etc)

And New York Times, apparently.

 

[southernhybrid]

It is strange that someone started a thread about fraud in one state, without mentioning how widespread fraud was in programs that offered help during the pandemic. So I am going to post a link from a government site that does into some detail about the widespread fraud, some of which is still being discovered, like the fraud mentioned in the OP. I read that article before I saw this thread. And, btw, Biden tried to add some things to make it more difficult for fraud to occur, that the Trump administration never did.
https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-25-107746.pdf

Pandemic-relief programs were critical for assuring public health and economic

stability. However, they also created unprecedented opportunities for fraud due

to the dollars involved and other risk factors. These factors included changes to

controls (e.g., reliance on self-certification) and the introduction of new programs.

Considering what was likely lost to fraud during the pandemic and assessing

what lessons and insights can be taken to better prepare for both normal

operations and future emergencies is critical for agencies. Beyond financial

impacts, fraud erodes public trust in government and hinders agencies’ efforts to

execute their missions and program objectives effectively and efficiently.

Therefore, taking steps to prevent fraud from occurring is crucial.

While the disbursement of pandemic-relief funds is largely over, the work of

investigating, prosecuting, and recovering fraudulently disbursed funds is

ongoing. The Department of Justice (DOJ) and its law enforcement partners

continue to prioritize the investigation and prosecution of defendants (individuals

or entities) that committed these offenses.

We performed this work under the CARES Act that includes a provision for GAO

to report on our ongoing monitoring and oversight efforts related to the COVID-19

pandemic. This report provides information on the status of pandemic-relief

program cases involving fraud-related charges brought by DOJ and how

agencies can enhance fraud prevention.

Key Takeaways

• The full extent of pandemic-relief program fraud will likely never be known

with certainty. However, estimates indicate that hundreds of billions of dollars

in potentially fraudulent payments were disbursed.

• At least 2,532 defendants have been found guilty of fraud-related charges

Figure 4: Types of Opportunists GAO Identified in Pandemic-Relief Program Fraud Cases

Note: This list is not inclusive of all the types of opportunists who defrauded pandemic-relief programs.

In addition to the types of individual opportunists shown in figure 4, we identified

cases where financial institutions and other entities entered into settlements to

resolve allegations related to pandemic-relief programs, as discussed later in this report

In addition to more traditional and organized criminal groups, entities in a wide

variety of sectors, and individuals from all walks of life, defrauded pandemic-relief

programs.

Our review of DOJ’s public statements illustrated the different types of fraud

schemes and fraudsters who attempted to defraud pandemic-relief programs.

According to DOJ officials, in addition to the opportunistic fraud discussed below,

domestic and transnational organized fraud groups are likely committing large-

scale fraud of pandemic-relief programs.8 DOJ is utilizing data analytics to

investigate the fraud committed by these groups.

Although crime syndicates and career criminals were involved in perpetrating

fraud against pandemic-relief programs, a significant number of entities and

individuals who did not appear linked to organized criminal groups also

attempted to take advantage of these programs. These entities and individuals

may be considered opportunists.

According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, opportunistic fraud

typically happens when ordinarily honest people exploit a sudden and

unexpected chance to defraud.9 As discussed later in this report, the pandemic

created an environment for fraudsters to take advantage of disruptions in normal

business operations, such as potentially weakened control environments. In turn,

opportunistic fraud was prevalent during the pandemic.

Our analysis showed that many types of opportunists attempted to defraud

pandemic-relief programs (see fig. 4).

So, people from all backgrounds and walks of life committed fraud, including pastors, law enforcement employees, physicians, etc. There is a list in the link and some previously honest people become caught up in these fraud crimes when the opportunity arises. So, why dwell on one small percentage of fraudsters? Has had already been mentioned, this was a federal program administered by the federal government so it's unlikely a governor would have much access to what was going on. Read the report and learn a lot more about this fraud and what the government is hoping to do to prevent so much fraud in the future. I'm skeptical anything positive will happen under the current administration.

 

[laughing dog]

Doubling down with attempts of racist humor magnifies the irony.

Somalis are a nationality, not a race.

Hiding behind pedantry fools no one.

 

[Don2 (Don1 Revised)]

Any anonymous person on social media claiming a conspiracy and being amplified by right-wing news (NY Post, Fox News, OAN, etc)

And New York Times, apparently.

I can't read your NYT article, just what you posted and so I don't know that the conspiracy as stated by the X account is there. Is it? Newsweek listed it but also said it couldn't confirm its identity or authenticity as I quoted earlier.

 

[Toni]

There is no excuse for the fraud. There is no evidence at this time that Gov. Walz was involved.

Nobody is claiming that the Knucklehead was himself involved in fraud. I would be surprised if he was.
But he is presiding over a state government that allowed it to happen and persist. He is responsible because the buck stops with him.

I happen to think two terms is enough for any governor. The last Mn governor to run for a 3rd term was DFLer Rudy Perpich and he got beat.

I would agree. I like the idea of reasonable term limits.

Props to Derec for posting this story. It must have been difficult since it is a negative abiut a white man.

Is everything about skin color with you?

With all due respect, skin color and gender seem to matter a great deal to you.

 

[Toni]

Not certain if this is the same NYT article but here’s a gifted link:

How Fraud Swamped Minnesota’s Social Services System on Tim Walz’s Watch

Prosecutors say members of the Somali diaspora, a group with growing political power, were largely responsible. President Trump has drawn national attention to the scandal amid his crackdown on immigration.

www.nytimes.com

According to the article, the fraud seems to extend from what turned out to be a fraudulent COVID era aid program, Feeding Our Future. I think it is important to recognize how difficult things were during COVID, with far fewer in person follow up with most programming, at the same time that large numbers of people, many of whom were children, were left sing access to in person school and meals.

 

[scombrid]

Just scapegoating to distract people. Trump rants about it. His lackeys hit the webs to spread the word.

As if you care about fraud.

I do.

GOP just let the head of a 1.8 Billion Dollar Ponzi scheme off the hook. Doesn’t look like fraud actually bothers them. Look at Rick Scott for example.

What is this whataboutism in aid of? Two wrongs do not make a right.

Trump rants on Thanksgiving. You share here shortly after. Attention to this fraud looks like a scapegoating whatabout distraction from the GOP shenanigans in light of the immigrant demonizing coming from the GOP.

 

[TSwizzle]

I wonder how much Ilhan Omar knew too

US Rep. Ilhan Omar’s close ties to the $1 billion welfare scam in her Minnesota congressional district are being uncovered. Omar (D-Minn.) held parties at one of the key restaurants named in the fraud, knew one of its now-convicted owners, and one of her own staffers has also been convicted — both for stealing millions. Omar even introduced the bill that led to $250 million in fraud. Yet she claims to have been completely unaware of it. “[Rep. Omar] knew who these people were. People she personally knew were making tens of millions of dollars in this program,” claimed Bill Glahn, a policy fellow with the Minnesota-based Center of the American Experiment, to The Post.

News

Walz is probably just dumb and incompetent, Omar is probably corrupt.

 

[laughing dog]

I wonder how much Ilhan Omar knew too

US Rep. Ilhan Omar’s close ties to the $1 billion welfare scam in her Minnesota congressional district are being uncovered. Omar (D-Minn.) held parties at one of the key restaurants named in the fraud, knew one of its now-convicted owners, and one of her own staffers has also been convicted — both for stealing millions. Omar even introduced the bill that led to $250 million in fraud. Yet she claims to have been completely unaware of it. “[Rep. Omar] knew who these people were. People she personally knew were making tens of millions of dollars in this program,” claimed Bill Glahn, a policy fellow with the Minnesota-based Center of the American Experiment, to The Post.

News

Walz is probably just dumb and incompetent, Omar is probably corrupt.

Ah, the old guilt by association smear. BTW, the Center of the American Experiment is a reactionary right wing "think tank".

 

[Don2 (Don1 Revised)]

If close associations mean guilt, we can throw Trump in prison for being bros with Epstein.