Ohio lawyer says she was assaulted while trying to investigate alleged daycare center

Mehek Cooke, the Ohio attorney who blew the whistle on alleged fraud in Ohio, said she was physically assaulted on Wednesday during her investigation into one of the alleged daycare centers in the Buckeye State.

According to Cooke’s post on X, the alleged daycare facility may be involved in fraudulent billing practices tied to publicly funded childcare.

🚨 Hey Ohio!

What started as a stop at 1st Choice Child Care LLC ended in an assault at Bright Futures Daycare LLC. A police report has been filed with @ColumbusPolice.

These are the people entrusted to take care of Ohio’s children?

We deserve answers. pic.twitter.com/wo4fDrvuwb

— Mehek Cooke🇺🇸 (@MehekCooke) January 1, 2026

Cooke wrote that what began as a visit to 1st Choice Child Care LLC escalated when Cooke went to Bright Futures Daycare LLC — at which point she was “assaulted.”

“Hey, Ohio!” she wrote. “A police report has been filed with @ColumbusPolice. These are the people entrusted to take care of Ohio’s children? We deserve answers.”

In the video, Cooke was assaulted after she tried to ask basic questions such as “Can we fill out the application?” and “How much does it cost to go here?” while filming the conversation on camera.

Thomas Hern, a communications consultant and former Turning Point USA national field director, was with Cooke during her visit and an assault on her, according to Cooke’s response to Hern in the comments section under her post.

Thankful you were with me!

— Mehek Cooke🇺🇸 (@MehekCooke) January 1, 2026

“They are getting more and more anxious that the scam is coming to an end. Stay safe!” Eric Daugherty, chief content officer for Right Line News and Florida’s Voice, wrote in response to the video.

They are getting more and more anxious that the scam is coming to an end. Stay safe!

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 1, 2026

Cooke has been outspoken about what she describes as “massive fraud” in Ohio’s taxpayer-funded programs, particularly involving Medicaid and welfare services, and has specifically highlighted concerns tied to programs serving Somali-American communities.

🚨 Hey Ohio!

I asked basic questions at taxpayer-funded daycares and got assaulted—then the “Rooster Ohio” said I would “find myself on the wrong side of Stand Your Ground.”

That is reckless, dehumanizing rhetoric. Accountability is not violence.

Ohio law is clear. pic.twitter.com/jxZcTvd0cg

— Mehek Cooke🇺🇸 (@MehekCooke) January 1, 2026

She previously said that fraud investigators in Minnesota were only seeing “the tip of the spear” and claimed similar vulnerabilities exist in Ohio’s system.

“They’re just rubberstamping a lot of these,” Cooke said. “And then that same individual, a week later, who’s supposed to be bedridden, is all over social media, whether they’re out dancing at a party or something like that. So, the symptoms aren’t really adding up at the end of the day.”

She added that Medicaid and welfare programs have been “infiltrated and broken down” due to the government not bothering to check whether these programs are actually legitimate.

“So, a lot of times what’s happening is an individual is coached to lie to a doctor,” Cooke said.

A group of Republican state lawmakers led by Rep. Josh Williams recently wrote to the Ohio Department of Children and Youth, urging “unannounced inspections” of childcare facilities receiving public funds, particularly in the Columbus area where the alleged assault occurred.

​​“There have been widespread public reports alleging that certain childcare facilities participating in publicly funded childcare programs are fraudulently billing the State of Ohio for children who are not actually in attendance,” the lawmakers wrote in the letter. “These allegations raise serious concerns regarding program integrity, the responsible use of taxpayer dollars, and the overall credibility of Ohio’s publicly funded childcare system.”