Amid the chaos over the Minnesota daycare scheme, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has announced the deployment of ICE agents in Minneapolis. The news came after a right-wing YouTuber alleged fraud at Somali-run daycares in the state. The ICE operations began in the cities last month after Donald Trump openly branded the community “garbage.”
In his remarks, the POTUS made it clear that he did not want Somali immigrants in the United States. After the alleged fraud was exposed, he said, “The Somalians are ripping off this country to the tune of $19 billion, but that’s only what they can find. So, usually when you’re looking at 19, that would mean it could be 50, but the numbers are astronomical.”
“They’re stealing money from the American taxpayer, and every one of them should be forced to leave this country, including Ilhan Omar, who’s a total crook,” Trump said last Sunday.
According to two senior DHS officials, the administration is taking the next step. They informed NBC that Noem plans to deploy 1,500 deportation officers and 600 investigative agents to Minnesota and Minneapolis.
JUST IN: The Trump administration is deploying 2,000 federal immigration agents to Minneapolis, Minnesota, to arrest illegal aliens and investigate fraud.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced today that he would not seek an unprecedented third term as the Somali fraud scandal… pic.twitter.com/1zfyAOFuh4
— RedWave Press (@RedWave_Press) January 5, 2026
In addition to DHS and FBI increasing operations in Minneapolis, the Department of Health and Human Services also cut funding to Minnesota daycares. In addition, the agency has also put restrictions on federal subsidies for the daycare that should be catering to the nation’s low-income children.
On December 29, 2025, Noem shared a clip on her X (formerly Twitter), writing, “Homeland Security Investigations @ICEGov are on the ground in Minneapolis right now conducting a massive investigation on childcare and other rampant fraud.”
FBI Director Kash Patel has also shared a “case update” on his X. “The FBI is aware of recent social media reports in Minnesota. However, even before the public conversation escalated online, the FBI had surged personnel and investigative resources to Minnesota to dismantle large-scale fraud schemes exploiting federal programs. Fraud that steals from taxpayers and robs vulnerable children will remain a top FBI priority in Minnesota and nationwide,” Patel wrote.
Homeland Security Investigations @ICEGov are on the ground in Minneapolis right now conducting a massive investigation on childcare and other rampant fraud.
More coming. pic.twitter.com/0DhyKedSyu
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) December 29, 2025
Not just the daycare fraud, Minnesota came into the spotlight previously as well for a Medicaid scheme. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a case of a massive $300 million fraud involving the nonprofit Feeding Our Future.
Meanwhile, although Donald Trump wants to deport all Somali immigrants, it might be tricky. According to the Irish Star, about 84,000 of the 260,000 total Somalis living in the United States live in Minneapolis. However, 58% of them were born in the U.S., while 87% of the foreign-born are naturalized citizens.
