Fake Somali Daycare Centres With No Children Pocketed Billions of Taxpayer Cash

RambleTamble said:
In the centers where there were no children, the YouTube "journalists" went there outside of normal operating hours, which is why there were no children there at that time. Real investigators confirmed that the centers were "operating as expected." While some centers had prior safety or record-keeping violations, none were related to fraud at the time of these recent checks.

In other words, it's pure B.S.
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The supposed operating hours not posted before videos were stated as 2pm-10pm. more people probably working daytime hours so not a great business model.
Those hours would not cover a full work shift and would not allow time for drop off or pick up and commute.

If parent needed to be at work at 2pm unless it is across street from "daycare" how would they drop off and relate any info and make it to work?

Just a straight 8 no time for lunch breaks? maybe Minnesota has no labor laws that would require a meal break?

The place also claimed it was the sign company that messed up in spelling .... this is hysterical someone buys these BS excuses.
 

January said:
Or staff take staggered lunch break times. As is common practice. Why is this a question? Have you never worked anywhere that does this?
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Nothing to do with the STAFF of daycare .... but working parents (the customers).
If parents have to work swing shift it is often 2-11pm not 10pm Parents would need time to drop off and pick up. Before 2 and after if they are the ones picking up. Have you never used a daycare?

As a person who used and worked daycare those hours are not logical......... look beyond the staff. a business can make any hours work for them but a service needs to fit customers.

2-10 is just eight hours without meal break so all working parents using only working PT?
I think it is fine to be an evening or night day care but the hours they stated do not make sense. I was evening manager and worked this shift.
 

  • After-School Focus: Centers like the Quality Learning Center in Minneapolis specifically marketed themselves as providing after-school care, with posted operational hours from 2:00 PM to 10:00 PM.
  • Target Population: These facilities provided services to families whose children attended traditional K-12 schools during the morning and early afternoon.
  • Government Verification: Following a viral video that claimed these late-opening centers were empty or fraudulent, the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families conducted compliance checks in late December 2025 and January 2026. Investigators confirmed that children were present and the centers were "operating as expected" during their stated business hours.
 
Context of Closure
  • Funding The center received $1.9 million in 2025 through the Minnesota Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP). The program provides taxpayer-funded assistance to eligible working families.
  • Allegations The viral video claimed the facility was receiving public funds but was empty of children during purported operating hours. The center's owners denied the claims, stating the visit occurred outside of its operating hours (2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday).
  • Inspections and Violations During its last state inspection in June 2025, the center was cited for ten safety violations, but state agencies have not found any evidence of fraud at this specific location, according to recent reports.
  • Current Status The facility is unable to reopen without reapplying for a license. The closure is part of a wider scandal in Minnesota involving alleged fraud exceeding $1 billion across various social service programs.
It seems like any time there are private companies receiving public funds, there's going to be fraud. We see that all the time with Medicare billing, construction projects, and of course, defense contractors.
 
Jeni said:
As a person who used and worked daycare those hours are not logical......... look beyond the staff. a business can make any hours work for them but a service needs to fit customers.

2-10 is just eight hours without meal break so all working parents using only working PT?
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after school care

or it fits the hours of people who live there - perhaps mostly part time or at home parents. or one parent drops off, another picks up the child

occasional care it is called here - places that have daycare options along with kindergarton - so their hours are shorter than a full business day

I didnt use a lot of day care when my kids were young, although I did work in one for a little while but I have used day care like that and after school care is a common thing here, although not usually to that late

The idea that something is automatically fake because the hours aren't your norm seems an odd conclusion to me
 
RambleTamble said:
Context of Closure
  • Funding The center received $1.9 million in 2025 through the Minnesota Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP). The program provides taxpayer-funded assistance to eligible working families.
  • Allegations The viral video claimed the facility was receiving public funds but was empty of children during purported operating hours. The center's owners denied the claims, stating the visit occurred outside of its operating hours (2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday).
  • Inspections and Violations During its last state inspection in June 2025, the center was cited for ten safety violations, but state agencies have not found any evidence of fraud at this specific location, according to recent reports.
  • Current Status The facility is unable to reopen without reapplying for a license. The closure is part of a wider scandal in Minnesota involving alleged fraud exceeding $1 billion across various social service programs.
It seems like any time there are private companies receiving public funds, there's going to be fraud. We see that all the time with Medicare billing, construction projects, and of course, defense contractors.
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I've checked on news coverage following the "daycare video." The upshot seems to be:

1) No real evidence of fraud among daycare centers -- my initial impressions were wrong

2) Vast amounts of fraud in Minnesota in everything from school lunch programs to housing to autism centers
 
January said:
after school care

or it fits the hours of people who live there - perhaps mostly part time or at home parents. or one parent drops off, another picks up the child

occasional care it is called here - places that have daycare options along with kindergarton - so their hours are shorter than a full business day

I didnt use a lot of day care when my kids were young, although I did work in one for a little while but I have used day care like that and after school care is a common thing here, although not usually to that late

The idea that something is automatically fake because the hours aren't your norm seems an odd conclusion to me
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Oh come on.
 
oh come on what??

You dont think centres can have different operating times or be occasional or after school care??

I dont know which applied here - Ramble tamble said it was focussed on after school care - but any seem possibilities for the operating hours.
 
Here's more info on the systemic fraud in Minnesota...

In January 2026, Minnesota is facing intense national scrutiny as federal and state investigations reveal what prosecutors call a "staggering" level of fraud in social service programs, with estimates of total losses reaching up to $9 billion since 2018.
The reasons for this concentration of fraud are attributed to several systemic, political, and operational factors:

1. Systemic Oversight Failures
State and federal audits have consistently identified "weak oversight" and a lack of basic internal controls within the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS).
  • "Pay Now, Scrutinize Later": Many programs were designed with low barriers to entry and minimal record requirements to ensure quick distribution of funds, which criminals exploited.
  • Fabricated Documentation: A January 2026 audit found that some DHS staff backdated or created documents to hide a lack of monitoring when state auditors began their probe into behavioral health grants.
  • Failed Monitoring: Between 2022 and 2024, the state distributed over $425 million in grants but failed to conduct required site visits or collect progress reports for many recipients.

2. Program Design Vulnerabilities
Specific programs were launched with inadequate safeguards against rapid, artificial growth:
  • Housing Stabilization Services (HSS): Originally estimated to cost $2.6 million annually, costs ballooned to $122 million by 2025 as fraud rings used fake documentation to bill for services never provided. The program was shut down in October 2025 due to these concerns.
  • Integrated Community Supports (ICS): Spending grew from $4.6 million in 2021 to $170 million in 2024, largely driven by fraudulent billing for individuals not actually receiving aid.

3. Cultural and Political Factors
  • Tolerance and Openness: Some experts suggest Minnesota's robust safety net and "open" culture, geared toward helping the vulnerable, made it a prime target for those looking to exploit trust.
  • Fear of Alienation: Critics of the state administration argue that some officials were hesitant to tighten oversight for fear of appearing to target or alienate the Somali-American community, which manages many of the affected service centers.
  • Political Blame: Current federal officials attribute the surge to "virtually no safeguards" during the pandemic, while state officials argue the federal government is now "weaponizing" fraud allegations for political purposes.

4. Specialized Fraud Rings
Investigators have uncovered highly organized fraud rings, some including specialist firms that helped bad actors recruit "clients" and fabricate the paperwork needed to bill the state. While many individuals charged are of Somali descent, officials note these rings have occasionally drawn in participants from out of state who heard about the ease of theft in Minnesota.
In response to these issues, Governor Tim Walz appointed the state's first Director of Program Integrity in late 2025 to overhaul oversight and restore accountability.

Too little, too late?
 

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