YouTuber, 23, Exposes $110 Million in Fraud in Minnesota Daycare Amid Growing Scandal over Somali Community Crimes

December 27, 2025 MINNEAPOLIS - While the mainstream media completely ignores the story, a 23-year-old independent journalist and YouTuber, Nick Shirley, has ignited a firestorm on social media with a 43-minute investigative video claiming to uncover over $110 million in taxpayer-funded fraud tied to Somali-run childcare, adult daycare, and healthcare facilities in Minnesota. The video, titled "I Investigated Minnesota's Billion Dollar Fraud Scandal," was posted on YouTube and X on December 26 and has amassed 60 million views in 2 days, drawing praise from high-profile conservatives and amplifying calls for accountability from Governor Tim Walz's administration.

In the video, Shirley, accompanied by an investigator named David who has tracked the issue for years, conducts door-to-door visits to multiple facilities in Minneapolis and St. Paul. They focus on businesses receiving substantial funds through programs like the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), a mix of federal and state dollars, and Medicaid reimbursements. Shirley poses as a parent seeking childcare for a fictional child named "Joey," asking basic questions about services, rates, and the presence of children. What they encounter, according to the footage, are largely empty buildings with blacked-out windows, locked doors, and evasive or hostile staff - despite these centers being licensed for dozens or hundreds of children and receiving millions in annual funding.

Key stops include the Mako Child Care and Mini Child Care Center, licensed for 120 children and reportedly receiving over $3 million in recent years, which appeared deserted; the ABC Learning Center, licensed for 40 children with nearly $3 million in funding over three years, also empty; and the Quality Learning Center, misspelled as "Learing" on its sign, licensed for 99 children and pulling in $4 million in two years, where staff refused entry and mistook Shirley for an ICE agent.

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23 year old revels as he is retweeted by Vice President JD Vance.

Other sites, like Sweet Angel Child Care (licensed for 74 children, $1.26 million in 2025) and Future Leaders Early Learning Center (licensed for 90 children, $6.67 million in two years), showed minimal or no activity, with one briefly revealing a single child before staff shut down inquiries.

Shirley and David also visited healthcare buildings housing clusters of Somali-owned companies - one with 14 firms and another with 22 - offering overlapping services like non-emergency medical transportation and home health care. These were estimated to handle $30-60 million annually in potential fraud, with allegations of false claims for unprovided services and pre-signed forms submitted retroactively. David, who claims to have been attacked twice for his investigations, described the fraud as "far worse than anybody can imagine," accusing state officials of writing checks without verification and fearing racism accusations if they scrutinize the Somali community, which votes as a bloc.

Interactions grew tense: Staff slammed doors, refused to discuss operations, and in one case, a group of Somali individuals followed the pair and filmed them. Police were called twice - once leading to an escort out of a healthcare building on harassment complaints, and again at a multi-center address on West Lake Street, where officers enforced trespassing rules and accused Shirley of propaganda.

Local residents interviewed expressed outrage, with one calling the situation "disgusting" and confirming no children had been seen at these sites in years. Shirley frames this as part of a broader "billion-dollar fraud scandal" under Walz, estimating 7-10 billion in total losses (later refined to about 8 billion), including funds allegedly funneled to terrorist groups like al-Shabaab in Somalia. He confronts Democratic state representatives at the capitol, grilling them on oversight failures, only to receive deflections blaming private providers and both parties. Shirley concludes: "We ALL work way too hard and pay too much in taxes for this to be happening. The fraud must be stopped."

The video exploded on X, where Shirley's post garnered over 67 million views, 363,000 likes, and 121,000 reposts. Vice President JD Vance amplified the story, praising Shirley's work as "far more useful journalism" than the 2024 Pulitzer Prize winners and calling it a "microcosm of the immigration fraud in our system." Journalist Andy Ngo, known for exposing urban unrest, shared similar sentiments in the context of citizen journalism risking personal safety to uncover such issues.

Elon Musk weighed in, criticizing Walz and linking the fraud to voter manipulation, while conservative figures like Benny Johnson and Derrick Evans hailed it as groundbreaking. This revelation builds on prior scandals, including the Feeding Our Future case, where over $250 million in COVID relief was allegedly stolen through fake meal programs, and reports of $100 million missing from Somali daycares as early as 2014. A November report from City Journal cited federal sources confirming millions in stolen funds sent back to Somalia.

Critics argue political cowardice and identity politics have enabled the schemes, with Minnesota's budget swinging from surplus to deficit partly blamed on unchecked fraud. Republican House Majority Whip Tom Emmer demanded Walz explain a specific $4 million disbursement to one misspelled center, while the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is probing billions in Minnesota's social service funds. Walz's office has not immediately responded to the latest allegations, though he previously stated his administration reported concerns to the FBI in past cases.

As the video continues to spread, it underscores a shift toward citizen journalism in exposing government waste, with calls mounting for arrests, audits, and potential deportations. Shirley, undeterred by risks, vows to continue his investigations, urging viewers to demand reform.

As of December 28, 2025, major mainstream media outlets (such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, MSNBC, ABC News, BBC, or CBC) have not reported on Nick Shirley's specific 42-minute videotape exposé or his on-the-ground investigation alleging $110 million in fraud from visiting purportedly empty childcare centers.Coverage of Shirley's video, posted on December 26, 2025, has been limited to:Conservative-leaning U.S. outlets like Fox News, Right-leaning sites like Gateway Pundit and Twitchy, International outlets such as Times of India, Economic Times, LiveMint (India), Daily Mail (UK), and Yahoo/Mediaite aggregates

These sources discuss the video's viral spread (over 65 million views on X in days), its claims of empty facilities receiving millions in Child Care Assistance Program funds, and related political reactions (e.g., from Rep. Tom Emmer and Elon Musk).Mainstream outlets have extensively covered the broader, ongoing Minnesota welfare fraud scandals, including the Feeding Our Future case (over $250 million stolen from child nutrition programs) and expansions into other programs totaling potential billions in losses since 2018. However, none of the searched results from major outlets mention Shirley, his video, or his specific allegations of uncovering $110 million in one day.This aligns with patterns where new, viral conservative influencer content sometimes receives delayed or limited pickup in traditional mainstream media, especially if tied to partisan narratives involving Gov. Tim Walz or immigrant communities.