Federal agents executed 22 court-authorized search warrants across the Twin Cities on Tuesday morning, targeting an alleged network of fraud in Minnesota’s child care and Medicaid programs that investigators say has cost taxpayers up to $9 billion since 2018.
The FBI and Homeland Security Investigations raids hit child care centers, autism therapy providers, and related businesses as part of a long-running federal probe. No arrests have been announced.
The Department of Justice confirmed the operation on Tuesday, writing: “@HSI_HQ and @HSISaintPaul are zeroing in on the rampant fraud of taxpayer dollars in Minnesota. We will stop at nothing to end the defrauding of the American people.”
In a following post, the DHS added that Gov. Tim Walz “…IGNORED the rampant fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars in Minnesota. The Governor has NO credibility on this issue. This fraud crackdown has come thanks to the leadership of @POTUS Trump and the administration’s commitment to holding fraudsters accountable.”
Among the most high-profile targets: the “Quality Learing Center” – ironically misspelled – on Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis.
The “child care center” went viral in late December after independent journalist Nick Shirley posted footage showing the facility appearing largely empty, with essentially no children present, during business hours while still billing state and federal programs. Quality Learing Center received roughly $1.9 million in Minnesota Child Care Assistance Program funds in the fiscal year 2025 alone.
The learning center had reportedly shut down in January, despite the sign being up.
Shirley’s videos seem to have lit a fuse under an investigation that had been quietly building in the shadows for years. Federal investigators have estimated the total fraud in Minnesota’s Medicaid and social service programs since 2018 could reach $9 billion or more – a number the Walz office has repeatedly pushed back on.
As of April 9, there have been 65 convictions connected to the widespread fraud schemes around Minnesota, per the DOJ, including five people who pleaded guilty last month for their roles in the Feeding Our Future scandal – a massive COVID-era fraud case in which a “nonprofit” allegedly stole nearly $300 million in federal child nutrition funds meant to feed needy children.
Five metro-area autism care centers were also visited on Tuesday as part of the same sweep, per The Minnesota Star Tribune. Investigators searched Global Star Therapy, Empower Skill Academy in Fridley, both the Minneapolis and Fridley locations of Aspen Associates, and the Mendota Autism Center in Mendota Heights – centers that collectively received $12.5 million in Medicaid reimbursements since 2021.
Photos of agents carrying out boxes of evidence from the locations in question were posted by the FBI with a caption reading, “The FBI is committed to keeping our communities safe and we’re working every day to accomplish this mission. This morning, FBI Minneapolis, with support from federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, conducted court-authorized law enforcement activity as part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation.”
The FBI is committed to keeping our communities safe and we're working every day to accomplish this mission.
This morning, FBI Minneapolis, with support from federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, conducted court-authorized law enforcement activity as part of an… pic.twitter.com/aV2qF1mdqe
— FBI Minneapolis (@FBIMinneapolis) April 28, 2026
Yet the Minneapolis Police Department claims it was not involved in Tuesday’s operations.
Minneapolis Police: We Weren’t Asked
The Minneapolis Police Department issued a formal statement making clear it played no role in Tuesday’s federal operations.
The department’s official statement, posted on April 28 on Facebook, reads:
“The City of Minneapolis is not involved in the federal operations being reported around Minnesota today, and as of 9:30 a.m., MPD has not been asked to assist with the execution of federal warrants. We understand that any federal actions in our neighborhoods may spark fear among residents, and we will continue to marshal City resources to help the community in the aftermath of Operation Metro Surge.”
Walz Takes Credit, Patel Pushes Back
In contrast to the City of Minneapolis’s stance, Gov. Tim Walz issued a statement taking credit for helping to prompt the federal investigation.
Walz posted to X on April 28 that “Today’s raids by state and federal law enforcement happened because our state agencies caught irregular behavior and reported it. That’s how the system is supposed to work, and our agencies will keep at it as long as there are fraudsters around to put behind bars.”
FBI Director Kash Patel posted a quip back to Walz on X in response:
Come again? This FBI and DOJ with our DHS partners drafted and executed every search warrant today. But go ahead and take credit for our work while we smoke out the fraud plaguing Minnesota under your governorship. https://t.co/HczInx5sZm
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) April 28, 2026
Walz’s take on the federal operations may be surprising to some, especially considering a recent legislative committee report titled “The Cost of Doing Nothing: How Tim Walz and Keith Ellison Fueled Minnesota’s Fraud Explosion” concluded that both the governor and attorney general of Minnesota were aware of widespread issues in federally funded programs as early as 2019.
