The US Treasury Department has launched an investigation into a massive COVID-19-related fraud scheme in Minnesota, where millions of dollars were allegedly siphoned off from welfare funds. The probe is centered on whether the stolen money was funneled to a Somali terror group, sparking concerns about national security and terrorist financing.
According to officials, the scheme involved a network of individuals who created fake companies and submitted false claims for pandemic-related relief funds. An estimated $40 million in ill-gotten gains were said to have been diverted from the Minnesota Department of Human Services' emergency fund, with some reports suggesting that up to half of these funds ended up with a Somali terrorist organization.
The probe is ongoing, with Treasury officials working closely with law enforcement agencies to track down those involved in the scheme and recover as much of the stolen money as possible. The investigation has also raised questions about how such scams are able to evade detection for so long, highlighting the need for greater vigilance and coordination between government agencies.
The move by the Treasury Department marks a significant escalation in its efforts to combat COVID-19-related scams and financial crimes. It comes amid growing concerns about the impact of these schemes on vulnerable populations and the broader US economy.
According to officials, the scheme involved a network of individuals who created fake companies and submitted false claims for pandemic-related relief funds. An estimated $40 million in ill-gotten gains were said to have been diverted from the Minnesota Department of Human Services' emergency fund, with some reports suggesting that up to half of these funds ended up with a Somali terrorist organization.
The probe is ongoing, with Treasury officials working closely with law enforcement agencies to track down those involved in the scheme and recover as much of the stolen money as possible. The investigation has also raised questions about how such scams are able to evade detection for so long, highlighting the need for greater vigilance and coordination between government agencies.
The move by the Treasury Department marks a significant escalation in its efforts to combat COVID-19-related scams and financial crimes. It comes amid growing concerns about the impact of these schemes on vulnerable populations and the broader US economy.
... like how do you even scam 40 million dollars from welfare funds? It's just insane 
. And now they're saying it might've gone to some Somali terrorist group? What are the chances, right? 
This investigation better not be a wild goose chase or we'll all end up looking like fools 
. I mean, how long does it take for this kind of thing to go undetected? Shouldn't our government agencies have some basic system in place to prevent this stuff from happening? 
It just goes to show how vulnerable we are to these types of scams...
This is a major red flag for me, especially with all the money involved - $40 million is a huge sum! I mean, you'd think that's a lot to get away with, but apparently, some people have ways of siphoning off funds without getting caught for years. It's like they're playing a game of cat and mouse with the system 
.
. We can't let scammers like these get away with it, especially when it's at the expense of vulnerable populations 
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. I mean, 40 million bucks just disappearin' like that? That's crazy talk. And to think it's all because some people couldn't resist scammin' the system... I'm just shakin' my head. It's wild how these scams can go on for so long and still manage to slip under the radar 
$40 million is a crazy amount of money! 
How can ppl do this tho? 
. And somali terror group tho, that's like, super serious business 
. Need to get those involved ASAP 
and make sure the money gets back where it belongs 
[GIF of a money bag being ripped open with coins spilling out, but instead of coins, there are terrorist flags waving in the background]
... I feel for the ppl who actually needed that money 
. I guess it highlights the need for better coordination between agencies, but it also makes me wonder what other scams might be lurking in the shadows... 
. I hope they're able to track down whoever was behind this scheme and get most of the money back. It's just sad that it had to come to this... 
and now we're talking about a potential link to a Somali terrorist organization? that's just wild 
i mean, i'm all for investigating these kinds of scams & making sure our agencies are working together, but come on... $40 million?! that's like, a small country or somethin' 
this is just wild how scammers were able to siphon off that much money from welfare funds 
I'm all for taking down scammers & keeping our country safe, but we gotta keep working to prevent these kinds of scams from happening in the first place 
How many people got caught up in this scheme and lost their hard-earned cash? And what's being done to prevent something like this from happening again in the future? 
. I hope the Treasury Department and law enforcement agencies can work together to bring those involved to justice and make sure this kind of thing never happens again 
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, which got me thinking, have you ever seen those adorable dog videos where they're wearing little masks? It's so funny how humans think we need to wear masks all the time, but dogs are like "I'm good, I've got my fur" 
, like what's going to happen? You're gonna need that much toilet paper to survive a pandemic? 