DeWine spokesman shrugs at fraud allegations: ‘Unfortunately the cost of doing business’

Republican Gov. Mike DeWine is remaining largely silent as allegations of fraud gain momentum and a scandal that began in Minnesota now appears to be spreading to the Buckeye State.

The fraud allegations appear to be on two fronts: state-funded childcare facilities and Medicaid fraud, both of which center on members of Ohio’s Somali community.

BREAKING: More than 40 daycare centers in Columbus, Ohio, all launched under the now-defunct Somali Education & Resource Center, reportedly began operations on the same day and collectively earned $14 million in 2024.

pic.twitter.com/r0UwzWxOWN

— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) December 31, 2025

Ohio.News has reached out to a DeWine spokesman for comment, including what the governor would say to Ohioans who may be worried about the fraud allegations and whether he thinks the claims warrant investigation. While the spokesman did not respond to Ohio.News inquiries, he told The Columbus Dispatch that fraud “is something that is unfortunately the cost of doing business.”

“If people are out there who could not contemplate that people were trying to defraud the public through day care centers, I understand it’s new to them … but it’s been known to the state for decades,” spokesperson Dan Tierney told the outlet. “So therefore, we have robust anti-fraud measures to try and stop this, this is something that is unfortunately the cost of doing business.”

On Tuesday, a group of state lawmakers, led by state Rep. Josh Williams, R-Sylvania Twp., sent a letter to Kara Wente, the director of the Ohio Department of Children and Youth, calling for unannounced inspections of daycares and specifically targeting those in the Columbus area.

Unannounced inspections of these “daycare” facilities in Columbus are the start. We also need immediate audits. If the fraud is confirmed, then shut downs, defunding, prosecutions, denaturalization and deportations.

My colleagues and I in the Ohio House are calling for the… pic.twitter.com/RcWMVI982P

— D.J. Swearingen (@DJSwearingenOH) December 30, 2025

Earlier this month, Mehek Cooke, an Ohio attorney and conservative commentator, told Fox News Digital that “Minnesota was just the tip of the spear” regarding fraud among taxpayer-funded social service programs. She claimed that Ohio’s Somali community is involved in the fraudulent “rubber-stamping” of Medicaid waiver services.

The scheme involves the state’s Medicaid waiver programs for home health care and doctors who receive kickbacks for enrolling people, even approving them for fake medical conditions. Ohio offers several Medicaid waivers for in-home care, primarily the Ohio Home Care Waiver for those under 60 with physical disabilities who need nursing-level care, and the PASSPORT Waiver for seniors 60 years and older who need support to stay home.

“It’s not about targeting a community, but it’s really about calling out these criminals who are draining resources for the elderly, disabled and taxpayers,” Cooke told Fox News. “Ohio deserves better.”

Earlier this month, as the allegations in Minnesota began to pick up steam, DeWine indicated he disagreed with President Donald Trump’s take on the Somali community. Trump claimed that Minnesota has evolved into “a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity,” where “refugees from Somalia are completely taking over the once great State.”

“I would say that in Columbus we have many people who came here from Somalia, who work hard and contribute to the community and to the economy,” DeWine told reporters in early December, according to State Affairs, saying he has “heard the comments by the President.”

We won’t let Ohio become Minnesota. https://t.co/6gDyfDuYEb

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) December 30, 2025

Meanwhile, a Somali-American entrepreneur and community leader with a connection to DeWine faced an $1,885.96 personal income tax lien filed in 2024, while maintaining direct business ties to a nonprofit serving Somali immigrants and funded by the Ohio government, according to a review of public records by Ohio.News.

DeWine appointed Farxaan Jeyte to the New African Immigrants Commission. Jeyte owns a company that received significant payments from the Somali Community Association of Ohio, a nonprofit supported by grants from the City of Columbus and the Ohio Department of Education.