Child care providers in Minneapolis under increased scrutiny respond

MN GOP worked with YouTuber investigation

In the days that have followed a viral video illustrating potential day care fraud in Minnesota, Minnesota GOP leaders, including House Speaker and governor candidate Rep. Lisa Demuth, have confirmed they were aware of the efforts of YouTuber Nick Shirley prior to the video being released. FOX 9’s Soyoung Kim has the details.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A viral video thrust Minnesota day care centers back into the spotlight as the state is facing allegations of widespread fraud.

FOX 9 investigators first reported on the issue of alleged day care fraud in 2013.

Amid the ongoing investigations, day care centers feel targeted

The backstory:

In the viral video, YouTuber Nick Shirley claimed to have uncovered fraud during a visit to 10 day care centers in Minnesota.

This prompted FBI Director Kash Patel to announce door-to-door checks of providers by Homeland Security investigators in Minnesota on Monday.

Dig deeper:

Speaking on Monday, the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) Commissioner Tikki Brown addressed the video directly.

Brown says each of the 10 facilities featured in the YouTube video has been visited at least once by the state over the last six months as part of standard licensing checks.

Now, Brown says the state is now reviewing each site again to check on the claims raised in the YouTube video.

DCYF officials say they currently have 55 open investigations related to the Child Care Assistance Program.

What they're saying:

The manager of Quality Learning Center, one of the day care businesses featured in a viral video accusing them of fraud, denied any wrongdoing.

"You don’t come outside of operational hours and say they’re using taxpayer dollars. That’s completely false," he said. "When there’s a specific sign on our door that says our days and hours. He came outside those hours and then claimed, hey they’re closed."

During Monday's press conference, officials said the Quality Learning Center had closed.

However, officials later sent a correction stating the Quality Learning Center had notified DCYF on Dec. 19 that it was closing, but officials learned Monday afternoon they had decided to remain open.

ABC Learning was another provider featured in the video. It was filled with children on Tuesday. The owner got emotional while defending her business.

"If I do something wrong, hold me accountable. I’m a human being, I can take my problems. But don’t blame me something I have nothing to do with," said Umi of ABC Learning.

"This center was opened five-and-a-half years," said Ahmed Hasan of ABC Learning. "This center never had a problem as far as I know. This ABC Learning Center never had a problem."