Federal agents executed search warrants at nearly 22 daycare centers across Minnesota on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, targeting operations suspected of defrauding taxpayers.
One of the raided facilities was the Quality Learning Center in Minneapolis, which became widely recognized for its misspelled sign reading “Quality Learing Center.”
The raids, conducted by the FBI Evidence Response Team and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), were described as part of an ongoing federal investigation into widespread taxpayer fraud. A Justice Department spokesman confirmed the operations were executed under court orders and were not related to immigration enforcement.
Journalist Nick Shirley uncovered significant fraud through direct visits to Somali-run daycares, reporting over $110 million in daycare fraud during a single day of investigation. His findings also revealed 14 Somali-owned home healthcare businesses at one address and 22 such businesses at another location.
A federal prosecutor has stated that Somali networks have defrauded taxpayers of industrial-scale sums, with an estimated $18 billion stolen since 2018.
Additional investigations by Shirley and Minnesotan David Hoch identified at least $16 million in fraud related to medical transportation services. These operations were found to include locations without vehicles, violations of state laws by housing multiple businesses under nearly identical names, and other irregularities.
In December, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued warnings to immigrant sponsors who had enrolled dependents in Medicaid, stating they must cover costs for such benefits.
According to a Center for Immigration Studies report, almost 90 percent of Somali households receive public assistance. Federal immigration officials also found that approximately 44 percent of cases reviewed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services contained fraud indicators.
The Corruption Perceptions Index ranks Somalia as the second-most corrupt country globally.
