Treasury rachets up investigations targeting Minnesota's Somali community for fraud

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department is targeting businesses that people use to wire money to family members abroad as the Trump administration rachets up investigations into fraud within Minnesota's Somali community, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday.

President Donald Trump has targeted the Somalian diaspora in Minnesota with immigration enforcement actions and has made a series of disparaging comments about the community. He has said the state is “a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity," though there has been little evidence to support that claim.

The new action was prompted in part by a series of fraud cases, including a nonprofit called Feeding Our Future accused of stealing pandemic aid meant for school meals. Prosecutors have put the losses from that case at $300 million.

Bessent has pointed to a report by conservative news outlet City Journal, which claimed that taxpayer dollars from defrauded government programs flowed to al-Shabab, an al-Qaida-linked militant group that controls parts of Somalia. The report cites unnamed sources and the allegations have not been substantiated. Federal prosecutors have not charged any defendants with supporting terrorists.

On Friday, Bessent said on social media that the Treasury Department will soon issue an order requiring money wire services that people use to send money to Somalia to submit additional verification to Treasury.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, a Treasury arm that combats financial crimes like money laundering and terrorism financing, will be deployed to assist in the effort, Bessent said. He added that the Internal Revenue Service would also be involved in looking into firms accused of engaging in fraud.

“Additionally, Treasury personnel are on the ground working hard to uncover the facts,” he said.