Minnesota's anti-ICE aid fund becomes latest casualty of state's embarrassing fraud problem

A program designed to assist businesses impacted by the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts in Minnesota has been shut down following widespread fraud concerns, according to local news reports.The board of Hennepin County in Minnesota, home to Minneapolis, approved $2 million in funding for local businesses impacted by Operation Metro Surge — a large-scale immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota launched in December 2025.The county received roughly 300 applications and ultimately distributed about $500,000 to 82 applicants, while more than 200 applications were flagged for potential fraud, according to local reports."The fact that people, after all this fraud, felt that they could apply and get away with it, I think it's a problem because clearly there's no fear out there," Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Lunde said, according to Kare 11.

"Until we get it where people fear things, then they're gonna keep doing it."EMMER SAYS MN FRAUD RAIDS SEND ‘CRYSTAL CLEAR’ MESSAGE AFTER FEDS HIT DOZENS OF SITESMinnesota Gov.Tim Walz proposed a $10 million emergency relief package for small businesses impacted by the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

(Jerry Holt/The Minnesota Star Tribune via Getty Images)Much of President Donald Trump’s rhetoric surrounding illegal immigration in Minnesota has been targeted at the state’s Somali population amid reports of widespread fraud.Members of Minnesota’s Somali community have been accused, and in some cases convicted, of using non-existent or inactive businesses and nonprofits to siphon money away from government programs intended to help the needy.FRAUD EXPERT EXPOSES HOW HIDDEN NETWORKS DROVE MINNESOTA FRAUD, OTHER MAJOR SCAMS: 'CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE'Minnesota Gov.Tim Walz testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing at the U.S.

Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2026.The committee held the hearing to examine the alleged misuse of fede...