Federal agents have executed 22 search warrants across Minnesota, primarily targeting child and daycare providers, as part of an ongoing fraud investigation. The operation, confirmed by the US Justice Department, is separate from immigration enforcement, amid lingering tensions between the Trump administration and state officials.
The raids come after an earlier Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) surge in the Twin Cities wound down following the fatal shootings of two US citizens. That operation had deployed around 3,000 agents and led to thousands of arrests, causing widespread disruption.
Vice-President JD Vance, appointed by Donald Trump as 'fraud czar', stated on social media that the task force would be 'relentless in exposing these fraudsters'. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, a Minnesota Republican, thanked the administration, saying the country would not tolerate 'waste, fraud, and abuse'.
The investigation follows Trump’s freeze on Minnesota's childcare funding in December over alleged fraud in social services, particularly within Somali American childcare centres. Over 60 people have been convicted in a probe that began under the Biden administration.
Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat, criticised the funding freeze, accusing Trump of politicising the issue to defund programmes that help Minnesotans. The latest federal activity continues to stoke debate over the administration's approach to fraud and immigration enforcement.
