A video exposing childcare centers in Minnesota that were allegedly involved in fraud has caused leftist Gov. Tim Walz’s (D) officials to go on defense.
A spokesperson for his office defended him and claimed the governor has long worked to stop fraud, Fox News reported Sunday.
“The governor has worked for years to crack down on fraud and ask the state legislature for more authority to take aggressive action. He has strengthened oversight — including launching investigations into these specific facilities, one of which was already closed,” the official said, adding Walz “hired an outside firm to audit payments to high-risk programs, shut down the Housing Stabilization Services program entirely, announced a new statewide program integrity director, and supported criminal prosecutions.”
In a social media post on December 18, the governor said, “We will not tolerate fraud, and we will continue to work with our federal partners to ensure fraud is stopped and fraudsters are caught.”
However, the news comes as citizen journalist Nick Shirley reports on the issue in Minnesota, claiming he and his team have uncovered massive fraud, Breitbart News reported Saturday. The outlet noted some of the places Shirley visited where alleged fraud occurred were daycare centers that reportedly received millions in federal aid but had no children at their facilities.
Meanwhile, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel said the agency has been investigating, per Breitbart News.
Patel stated:
The FBI is aware of recent social media reports in Minnesota. However, even before the public conversation escalated online, the FBI had surged personnel and investigative resources to Minnesota to dismantle large-scale fraud schemes exploiting federal programs. Fraud that steals from taxpayers and robs vulnerable children will remain a top FBI priority in Minnesota and nationwide.
In addition, the Small Business Administration (SBA) is reportedly ending grants to Minnesota amid the alleged fraud linked to the Somali community in the state, according to Breitbart News.
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