Somali fraud probe in Minnesota underscores growing warnings on cash reaching extremists

The ongoing investigations into fraud successful the Somali assemblage successful Minnesota person different chilling angle: imaginable links to jihad.

President Donald Trump’s caller nationalist information strategy wants to determination connected from the days erstwhile the Middle East dominated overseas policy. But the Minnesota payment fraud schemes are a informing sign. Closing the doorway connected extremist Islam’s ideology – and its greedy tentacles present successful America – whitethorn beryllium harder than it looks.

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Treasury Secretary Scott BessentScott Bessent was disquieted capable to motorboat an probe into whether wealth was transferred from Minnesota to the infamous al-Shabaab jihadist radical successful Somalia.

"A batch of wealth has been transferred from the individuals who committed this fraud," Bessent told Margaret Brennan connected "Face the Nation" earlier this month. Much of that wealth "has gone overseas, and we are tracking that some to the Middle East and to Somalia to spot what the uses of that person been," helium said.

The main motive, of course, was "pure, unmitigated greed," arsenic U.S. District Judge Nancy E. Brasel said successful her Aug. 6 sentencing of Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, who was convicted successful a $250 cardinal fraud strategy that exploited a federally funded kid nutrition programme during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the question is whether the sheer measurement of remittances to Somalia whitethorn person straight oregon indirectly benefited panic networks.

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Remittances are the target. Somalia’s GDP successful 2024 was conscionable $12 billion. Cash flows from the U.S. to Somalia totaled astir $215 cardinal past year. ISIS successful Somalia runs a integer hawala web financing operations crossed Africa to money terrorism, according to an Oct. 7 study from the Africa Defense Forum.

Americans aren’t the lone ones dealing with fraud, suspicious wealth flows and worries astir violent ties.

On Nov. 24, the Swedish paper Expressen reported that implicit $100 cardinal successful Swedish payer kronor intended for preschools and schools successful Sweden was alternatively siphoned disconnected by an Islamist web moving a payment fraud scheme. It’s a web agreed by communal household ties, transgression concern and payment crimes, according to Expressen. Swedish constabulary besides rounded up respective individuals linked to extremist and convulsive extremism astatine an flat northbound of Stockholm. Expressen concluded that 2 networks engaged successful pure, large-scale payment transgression for important sums.

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"The wealth disappears and does not fulfill its societal purpose, portion others get affluent by appropriating nationalist funds," Gothenburg Economic Crime Authority Chief Prosecutor Henric Fagher told the Swedish quality site.

Beyond the disgust astatine large-scale fraud, concerns stay astir violent recruiting and radicalization. In 1 well-known case, 30 ISIS fighters traveled from Gothenburg to Syria successful 2013. Eventually, 300 Swedes joined jihadi groups, according to The Guardian, making Sweden 2nd lone to Belgium arsenic a recruiting source. In 2023, 24 ex-ISIS fighters were recovered to beryllium moving arsenic nationalist employees successful Sweden.

Americans person crushed to beryllium concerned. A twelvemonth ago, 23-year-old Abdisatar Ahmed Hassan tried doubly to permission Minnesota to articulation ISIS successful the Islamic State successful Somalia. He was arrested and pleaded blameworthy connected Sept. 29 to attempting to supply worldly enactment and resources to a designated overseas violent organization. Millions of dollars of payment fraud taking spot alongside known cases of ISIS radicalization is flat-out scary. "There is nary borderline for mistake erstwhile it comes to terrorism," Acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said successful a statement. 

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Finally, the Somali fraud schemes are yet different reminder that the wide U.S. exile and asylum argumentation indispensable beryllium re-examined. Time was erstwhile asylum argumentation reflected U.S. nationalist interests, similar absorbing those who fled the Soviet Union. Asylum argumentation went adrift aft the Cold War.

As the caller nationalist information strategy says, "who a state admits into its borders — successful what numbers and from wherever — volition inevitably specify the aboriginal of that nation."

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The tragic shooting of 2 National Guard soldiers successful Washington, D.C., connected the time earlier Thanksgiving should person been capable of a warning.

Admitting waves of refugees is not a sustainable policy.

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