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Scrutiny over Minnesota fraud increases
Minnesota’s fraud scandal is back in the national spotlight centered around child care assistance programs after allegations of fraud throughout the state. FOX 9’s Soyoung Kim has the latest update.
(FOX 9) - Minnesota’s Department of Human Services (DHS) has suspended the licenses of care center owners after both were charged in separate fraud cases following an investigation over their qualifications to provide home and community-based services.
DHS licenses revoked
What we know:
Smart Therapy Center LLC, registered to Asha Hassan, received its license to provide home and community-based services on Oct. 1, 2021.
On Oct. 10, 2025, DHS issued a temporary immediate suspension of its operations due to Hassan being criminally charged for allegedly defrauding federally funded healthcare benefits administered by DHS.
The alleged operations of Smart Therapy Center, located at 2614 Nicollet Ave. in Minneapolis, made Hassan the first defendant charged in a new wide-ranging fraud investigation over state-administered autism services.
In December, Hassan pleaded guilty to a $14 million Medicaid scheme, admitting she also stole hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars as part of the Feeding our Future fraud.
As part of the scheme run through Smart Therapy, Hassan would supposedly provide one-on-one care for children with autism.
According to court documents as well as her own admissions, Hassan and her partners approached parents in the Somali community to recruit their children — in some cases paying kickbacks to families who enrolled with Smart Therapy — and then would over-bill the taxpayer-funded program or make-up services that were never provided.
As part of her guilty plea, the 29-year-old agreed to pay nearly $16 million in restitution to the U.S. government.
The plea also includes a potential prison sentence of between 70 and 87 months.
Hassan will remain free and out of custody until she is formally sentenced.
Dig deeper:
Registered to Anwar Adow, 24hrs Home Care in Blaine received its license to provide home and community-based services on Oct. 1, 2021.
On Oct. 10, 2025, DHS similarly issued a temporary immediate suspension due to Adow being criminally charged as one of the first defendants in the housing stabilization fraud case.
Adow owned Liberty Plus LLC, a company based out of Roseville, through which he instructed his employees to "bill as much as they could" and incentivized them to inflate their hours worked. Prosecutors say Anwar Adow made more money when his employees over-represented their billings, and he would submit those billings to the program for reimbursement.
Liberty Plus received more than $1.2 million in Medicaid funds for the alleged services provided to around 200 beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, Adow allegedly diverted most of the funds to his employees and brother, in addition to leasing a Mercedes-Benz, making investments and using the money to fund his lifestyle, according to the Department of Justice.
What's next:
The DHS says both revocations go into effect on Jan. 7, 2026.