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'Epicenter of fraud': Minnesota's empty stomachs, fake autism therapy and a scandal that could top $2 billion
By Nikolas Lanum, Andrew Miller
Published December 18, 2025
Minnesota officials and prosecutors are warning that the state is facing an unprecedented fraud crisis in its social service programs, with losses potentially reaching as high as $2 billion, according to those who have investigated the cases.
Republican state Sen. Michael Kreun said Minnesota has long been aware of the problem but failed to contain it.
"Minnesota has an epidemic of fraud, as the rest of the nation is learning," Kreun said. "We’ve known here in Minnesota for quite some time that we’ve had a massive fraud problem. And it’s turning out that probably Minnesota is the epicenter of fraud in the United States right now."
The warnings follow the massive Feeding Our Future case, one of the largest pandemic-related fraud prosecutions in U.S. history, and growing scrutiny of other state programs, including false claims related to the Housing Stabilization Services (HSS).
Housing Program Ballooned Before Being Shut Down
Minnesota locations accused of fraudulent claims were investigated by Fox News Digital, uncovering vacant lots and nonexistent suites. (Nikolas Lanum/Andrew Mark Miller/Fox News Digital)
INSIDE MINNESOTA’S $1B FRAUD: FAKE OFFICES, PHONY FIRMS AND A SCANDAL HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
Kreun pointed to the HSS program as a clear example of how fraud allegedly spiraled out of control.
The program, launched nearly four years ago, was initially expected to cost about $2.6 million annually. Instead, spending surged to more than $100 million last year and was on pace to exceed $120 million this year before the program was shuttered.
"We’re learning [it is] probably at least $300 million in fraud right now," Kreun said. "And the fraud was so pervasive that they basically had to shut that program down."
An in-person investigation by Fox News Digital found that many addresses listed on the HSS and Feeding Our Future claims were fabricated. Some led the team to empty parking lots, nonexistent office suites and legitimate businesses with no association to the fraud entities in question.
Fake Therapy Sessions and Kenyan Real Estate
Kreun warned that similar problems may exist in other social service programs, including autism-related services.
"The autism services program, for example, probably has that level of fraud, maybe even more," he said.
While investigating the scandal, federal agents discovered that one suspected scammer, Asha Farhan Hassan, defrauded the state’s autism-treatment program of roughly $14 million. Hassan allegedly billed Medicaid for fake therapy sessions, used untrained staff and paid parents $300 to $1,500 a month to keep their kids in the program. She sent hundreds of thousands of dollars abroad, including to purchase real estate in Kenya, prosecutors said.
The Minnesota State Capitol on Feb. 12, 2024, in St. Paul, on the opening day of the 2024 session of the legislature. (Steve Karnowski/Associated Press)
The autism program’s budget jumped from $3 million in 2018 to nearly $400 million in 2023, according to Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
At least 85 entities are under investigation.
‘Shockingly Easy’ to Commit Fraud
Former federal prosecutor Joe Teirab, who briefly worked on the Feeding Our Future case, said the scheme was notable not only for its size, but for how easy it was to carry out.
"Honestly how easy this fraud was to do," Teirab said. "These fraudsters were just saying that they were spending all this money on feeding kids… and they were just making up these PDFs, putting false names into Excel sheets."
"I could do that in five minutes on a computer if I had absolutely no conscience," he added.
Two Somali women walk through a Minneapolis neighborhood as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz appears in a split image. Lawmakers say the state’s oversight failures and political sensitivity around Somali-run nonprofits helped fuel the $1 billion welfare fraud scandal now under federal investigation. (Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)
Teirab said oversight failures within the Minnesota Department of Education and other agencies played a significant role. He argued that officials had incentives to avoid scrutiny, citing political sensitivities surrounding Minnesota’s Somali community.
"There were huge incentives to just turn the other way," Teirab said. "There’s a sense of, ‘If we say something, are they going to call us racist?’ And that’s exactly what happened."
A widely circulated DHS whistleblower account alleged that staff who raised internal fraud concerns were ignored, reassigned or sidelined — which tracks with Teirab’s account.
Political Pressures
Townhall columnist Dustin Grage described alleged political pressures after the Minnesota Department of Education briefly halted payments to Feeding Our Future due to suspected fraud.
"Omar Fateh… as well as Jamal Osman, a city councilman in Minneapolis, they actually ended up lobbying to the governor and saying, ‘Hey, this is racist if you are to do this,’" Grage said.
A lawsuit was filed against the state following the suspension of payments, though it was later dismissed. Payments resumed, and the guardrails were once again shaved down.
Grage also pointed to the governor’s authority to subpoena bank records tied to Feeding Our Future, a step he said was never taken.
Omar Fateh ran on a socialist platform for mayor in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Getty)
"They have that tool in their disposal, and they refuse to use it for whatever reason," Grage said. "Maybe they knew about it. Maybe it’s just complete incompetence."
Aimee Bock, the founder and executive director of Feeding Our Future, and Salim Said, a local restaurant owner, were found guilty of their roles in the scheme, with prosecutors stating that they splashed their cash on luxury homes and cars, as well as their lavish lifestyles.
They claimed to have served 91 million meals, for which they fraudulently received nearly $250 million in federal funds, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota.
Total Losses Could Exceed $2 Billion
Teirab said Feeding Our Future was not the only organization implicated. Another nonprofit, Partners in Nutrition (also known as Partners in Quality Care), has also been publicly identified in Fox News Digital reporting.
When combining alleged fraud within Feeding Our Future, Partners in Quality Care, housing stabilization and other programs, the total losses exceed $1 billion. Teirab and former acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson estimated the figure could surpass $2 billion.
MINNESOTA RESIDENTS SLAM WALZ, STATE OVERSIGHT AFTER $250M FEEDING OUR FUTURE FRAUD
"So that is what we’re dealing with," Teirab said. "It’s a travesty that our hard-earned taxpayer dollars are being wasted away."
What Comes Next
The revelations have intensified calls for greater oversight, transparency and accountability across Minnesota’s social service programs. Lawmakers and prosecutors warn that without systemic reforms, similar fraud schemes could continue undetected.
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As investigations and audits move forward, Minnesota officials face growing pressure to explain how such extensive fraud occurred and how the state will prevent it from happening in the coming years.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Gov. Tim Walz’s office, Jamal Osman and Omar Fateh for comment.
Fox News' Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/epicenter-fraud-minnesotas-empty-stomachs-fake-autism-therapy-scandal-could-top-2-billion