Minnesota child day care fraud cash going to terrorists? Let’s unpack this.

St. Paul Pioneer Press ^ | PUBLISHED: May 15, 2018 at 6:46 pm | UPDATED: May 16, 2018 at 9:55 am | Dave Orrick

[Zhang Fei]

CHILD CARE FRAUD

This is real. There are 10 open investigations and a number of closed cases, including convictions. The state has closed 13 centers since it formed a fraud investigation unit in 2014, officials have said.

Patterns are similar: Someone opens up a child care center and accepts children of poor parents who qualify for state taxpayer day care subsidies. The center bills the state and gets the money.

But here’s the catch: The day care center doesn’t really provide day care. Parents sign the kids in and sign them out, providing the center with needed paperwork to bill the state. The parents might get a kickback for this lie.

And yes, most, if not all, of the fraud cases that fit this mold are run by immigrants from East Africa, including Somalia and Kenya, officials said.

HOW MUCH FRAUD?

No one seems to know for sure, but it’s at least tens millions of dollars, based on previous investigations.

It’s almost certainly not as big as $100 million, according to Chuck Johnson, acting commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Services. He told Minnesota Public Radio that figure was not “credible” because it would account for half of the state’s child care assistance program.

“You can’t defraud us for more than you’ve billed us,” he said, urging caution about some of the elements, or inferences made from, the KMSP report.

However, a state whistle-blower on Tuesday told lawmakers he believes that fraud is rampant.

“I’ve had investigators tell me it’s closer to 80 percent fraud rate,” said Scott Stillman, a former state investigator. He was a key source for KMSP, drawing on his years of work at the state’s digital forensics lab. He examined the cellphones and computers of suspected fraudsters.

[Liz]

You have what is THE LAW...

...figure it out......

THE LAW means nothing to these people.