Minnesota Child Care Fraud Claims Under Fire as State Says Centers Still Open
State investigators say Minnesota child-care centers accused of fraud in a viral clip remain licensed and open, pushing back on claims that millions in subsidies were stolen.
State officials push back after viral video sparks outrage
ST. PAUL—A 43-second clip ricocheted across TikTok last week, showing what looked like shuttered Minnesota child-care centers and claiming millions in stolen subsidies. By Monday, investigators told a different story: the buildings are open, kids are inside, and no criminal charges have been filed.
The video that lit the fuse
Posted by an anonymous account with the caption “Your tax dollars at work—NOT,” the footage pans across locked doors and empty parking lots, implying the centers were ghost operations. Within 48 hours it had 2.4 million views and tens of thousands of comments demanding jail time.
“Social media moves faster than subpoenas,” said Minnesota Department of Human Services inspector Janet Pollack. “We’re obligated to correct the record when misinformation scares parents and threatens licensed providers.”
What the records actually show
- All five centers named in the video are currently licensed and operating, according to DHS online dashboards updated daily.
- State auditors flagged two of them for paperwork errors in 2022—overpayments totaling $18,340 that were repaid within 90 days.
- No search warrants have been executed; no fraud charges filed.
Parents caught in the middle
At Little Lights Daycare in north Minneapolis, director Carla Jimenez spent the week reassuring families. “One mom pulled her toddler out, crying, ‘What if you close tomorrow?’ We had to show her our attendance sheets and bank statements to prove we’re real.”
Why the rumor spread so fast
Child-care fraud cases in the state have made headlines since 2018, when a federal sweep netted $100 million in charges against Somali-run centers. That history primed the algorithm—and the public—for another scandal. Experts say the latest video exploited those memories without new evidence.
What happens next
The Department of Human Services has asked the state’s IT division to track the video’s origin; if it was designed to manipulate stock prices of publicly traded child-care chains, securities fraud could come into play. Meanwhile, legislators are debating tighter background checks for providers—something both fraud fighters and center owners support, if it calms the frenzy.