Whistleblower warns about massive fraud committed by Somalis from Ohio

Whistleblowers and conservative media outlets are raising concerns about what they describe as widespread fraud tied to Somali-run programs in Ohio and Minnesota, warning that existing criminal cases may be just the tip of an iceberg.

Now, following a viral video from an independent journalist, federal authorities are stepping up their investigation into the fraud allegations in Minnesota.

According to one whistleblower, “massive fraud is happening in plain sight” within Somali-led social service and welfare-related operations in Ohio, Fox News reported. Mehek Cooke, an Ohio attorney and conservative commentator, said that fraud scandals in Minnesota – another infamous state – are “just the tip of the spear.”

“They’re just rubberstamping a lot of these,” she told Fox News. “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.”

The whistleblower, with direct knowledge of government-funded programs, also said that, despite repeated warnings, authorities have been slow to act.

Fox News pointed to similarities with Minnesota’s Feeding Our Future case, in which federal prosecutors say defendants stole more than $250 million from a pandemic-era child nutrition program, with a federal judge convicting the scheme’s alleged mastermind earlier this year, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Another defendant was later sentenced to 10 years in prison, according to a separate Justice Department report. On Feb. 7, IRS investigators announced in a press release that additional guilty pleas were tied to the same conspiracy.

Breitbart News also reported on whistleblowers who claimed that fake childcare centers and social service providers were used to siphon millions in taxpayer dollars. The news source also interviewed Cooke, who warned about the alleged fraud.

In its report covering “shocking EBT fraud schemes,” the Gateway Pundit claimed its undercover footage showed benefits being exchanged illegally for cash and luxury goods.

In a Monday story, Reuters reported that Minnesota officials and federal authorities acknowledged the scope of fraud uncovered so far but cautioned against broad generalizations. According to the news source, the FBI is investigating multiple fraud schemes in the state involving Medicaid, childcare, and food programs, with officials saying the total losses could reach into the billions.

The Minnesota Reformer also wrote that the U.S. attorney believes Medicaid fraud alone may exceed $9 billion. The allegations of massive fraud in Minnesota have garnered national and international coverage.

“We have entrusted states to look at the funding and to allocate it to build programs, to build rules and regulations,” Cooke said, per Breitbart. “But unfortunately, in states like Ohio, it is being infiltrated and broken down because you don’t actually have independent assessments with not only doctors but somebody at the Department of Medicaid coming in.”

“So, a lot of times what’s happening is an individual is coached to lie to a doctor,” she added, claiming that those filing often don’t qualify for such benefits.