Unearthed surveillance exposes how parents were allegedly involved in Minnesota's daycare fraud scheme

As federal authorities investigate reports of massive fraud taking place in Minnesota daycares, an unearthed video from a 2018 fraud case shows parents and providers involved in a fraud scheme dating all the way back to 2015.

The video, taken from a local Fox report from 2018, shows parents checking their children into a daycare center in Hennepin County, Minnesota, only to leave with their children minutes later.

The video was taken from a surveillance camera as part of a case prosecuted by Hennepin County, according to the 2018 Fox 9 report. Under the scheme, low-income parents would sign in their children for daycare services so that providers could then claim reimbursement for services that were never truly provided, per Fox 9. The outlet said that, according to surveillance video, some days no families would show up, but that the daycares would claim reimbursements from the government nonetheless.

The time stamp on the surveillance video shows March 2015.

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Another video in the broadcast showed a man handing an envelope to a parent with an alleged kickback payment for participation in the scheme.

This comes amid widespread outrage over a viral video posted by Nick Shirley on Friday showing visits to multiple childcare centers in Minnesota, including one that allegedly received millions of dollars in state funding despite appearing largely inactive.

The video has sparked widespread backlash, drawing criticism of Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz throughout the weekend from several high-profile figures, including Vice President JD Vance, Donald Trump Jr. and Elon Musk.

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The White House on Sunday reposted an X post from Education Secretary Linda McMahon, who called the alleged fraud a "breathtaking failure."

At the time of the video's release, Walz was already under heavy fire amid the scandal enveloping his administration that notably included at least $1 billion lost to alleged social services fraud largely tied to Minneapolis' Somali community.

Commenting on the resurfaced video, conservative strategist Greg Price wrote on X, "Somali fraudsters have been stealing from taxpayers for years and it's clear that the entire Somali community is in on it."

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FBI Director Kash Patel said the agency has surged additional personnel and investigative resources to Minnesota as part of an ongoing effort to "dismantle large-scale fraud schemes exploiting federal programs."

Patel said Sunday that the bureau moved resources into the state before recent online attention intensified, pointing to the Feeding Our Future investigation, which uncovered a $250 million scheme that siphoned federal food aid intended for children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The case has already resulted in 78 indictments and 57 convictions, with prosecutors also charging defendants in a separate plot to bribe a juror with $120,000 in cash, Patel said, adding that the investigation remains ongoing.

"The FBI believes this is just the tip of a very large iceberg. We will continue to follow the money and protect children, and this investigation very much remains ongoing," he wrote on X. "Furthermore, many are also being referred to immigration officials for possible further denaturalization and deportation proceedings where eligible."