DOJ charges 2 women of Somali ancestry with $21 MILLION Minnesota autism fraud scheme, sending taxpayer funds to Kenya

Federal authorities have arrested two Minnesota women accused of orchestrating a years-long Medicaid fraud operation that allegedly siphoned more than $21 million from taxpayers through Minnesota’s autism treatment program.

According to federal prosecutors, Shamso Ahmed Hassan, 55, and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, 25, both of Somali ancestory, were indicted on multiple charges tied to what investigators describe as a large-scale scheme involving fraudulent Medicaid billing through two autism treatment centers. The DOJ has said that some of the funds siphoned off were sent to Kenya. 

The indictment alleges the pair submitted false reimbursement claims through Minnesota’s Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention (EIDBI) Program between May 2020 and December 2024.