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Minnesota pair bilked $21 million in state funds meant for autism services: feds

Nypost · · 559 words · By Patrick Reilly
Financial Crime Misuse of Public Funds Federal Law Enforcement
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Minnesota pair bilked $21 million in state funds meant for autism services: feds See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 12
Techniques found 2
Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center75%
Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Minnesota pair bilked $21 million in state funds meant for autism services: feds See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The New York Post on GoogleTwo Minnesota fraudsters allegedly swindled more than $21 million in funding earmarked for autism services through two bogus companies and then spent it lavishly on overseas property, officials said.

Common ground

Shamso Ahmed Hassan, 55, and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, 25, whose mugshots were released on Wednesday, made off like bandits by submitting millions of dollars in fake claims to Minnesota’s Early Intensive Development and Behavioral Intervention Program [EIDBI]…

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Name Calling / Labeling: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/28/us-news/minnesota-pair-bilked-21-million-in-state-…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 2 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning
Loaded Language 90% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.
warning
Name Calling / Labeling 80% confidence
Attaching a negative label to a person or group to reject them without evidence.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing name calling / labeling helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 12 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6
schedule Pending 2
info Single Source 2
verified Verified By Reference 1
help Insufficient Evidence 1
schedule
Claim 1: “Both companies lost their Minnesota state licenses earlier this year”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
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Claim 2: “Two Minnesota fraudsters allegedly swindled more than $21 million in funding earmarked for autism services through two bogus companies”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm that two Minnesota residents were arrested for a Medicaid fraud scheme involving autism services totaling approximately $21 million.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 · Through both companies, the defendants carried out a scheme to defraud a health care benefit program of approximately $21.1 million by submitting false and fraudulent claims to Medicaid…
https://www.dhs.gov/news/2026/05/27/two-minnesota-residents-…
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web search NEUTRAL — May 28, 2026 · Two women in Minnesota are accused of being involved in an enormous fraud scheme related to Minnesota’s autism Medicaid program. The two Minnesota residents allegedly submitted fraudule…
https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/two-minnesota-women-c…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 28, 2026 · Two Minnesota fraudsters allegedly swindled more than $21 million in funding earmarked for autism services through two bogus companies and then spent it lavishly on overseas...
https://nypost.com/2026/05/28/us-news/minnesota-pair-bilked-…
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Claim 3: “Their arrests are part of a larger fraud scheme that totaled more than $46 million and included two other defendants, Asha Farhan Hassan, 28, and Abdinajib Hassan Yussuf, 27”
CORROBORATED
Web search results mention a larger fraud scheme totaling $46 million and the involvement of other defendants/co-conspirators.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 28, 2026 ... Two Minnesota fraudsters allegedly swindled more than $21 million in funding earmarked for autism services through two bogus companies and ...
https://nypost.com/2026/05/28/us-news/minnesota-pair-bilked-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The new indictment against Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Yusuf — both of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota — include allegations against co-conspirator 1 and 2, whose ...
https://www.aol.com/articles/minnesota-pair-bilked-21-millio…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 22, 2026 ... Parents in Minnesota were paid up to $1500 per child if they enrolled kids for bogus treatments at two autism centers as part of the ...
https://nypost.com/2026/05/22/us-news/minnesota-parents-fake…
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Claim 4: “Hassan and her employee, Yusuf, who live together and are both US citizens, remain in federal custody”
CORROBORATED
Three separate sources (including official HSI/ICE social media and LinkedIn posts) confirm that both individuals are US citizens and were arrested/are in custody.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 28, 2026 ... Homeland Security Investigations (@HSI_HQ). 363 likes 44 replies. ICE @HSISaintPaul arrested U.S. citizens Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan ...
https://x.com/HSI_HQ/status/2059803143500616120
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web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 ... Two Minnesota residents have been arrested, Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, for a $21 million Medicaid fraud scheme involving false ...
https://www.instagram.com/p/DY3P42qDctY/
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web search NEUTRAL — May 27, 2026 ... ICE HSI St. Paul arrested U.S. citizens Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf for their alleged roles in a scheme to defraud Medicaid ...
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/homeland-security-investigati…
verified
Claim 5: “From 2018 to 2025, spending in Minnesota’s EIDBI program... rose from more than $600,000 to over $400 million”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The claim is directly confirmed by a cross-reference citing Department of Justice officials regarding the spending increase of the EIDBI program.
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cross reference SUPPORTS — From 2018 to 2025, spending in Minnesota’s EIDBI program, which funds autism centers, rose from more than $600,000 to more $400 million, Department of Justice officials said.
https://nypost.com/2026/05/22/us-news/minnesota-parents-fake…
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Claim 6: “The pair enrolled two companies co-owned by Hassan — Smart Therapy Center LLC and Star Autism Center LLC — as service providers... and were secured $21.2 million in funds”
CORROBORATED
Web search results confirm the involvement of Smart Therapy Center LLC and Star Autism Center LLC and the amount of approximately $21.2 million.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Haskell Company is an architecture, engineering, construction and consulting firm headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. It was founded by Preston Haskell in 1965 as the Preston H. Haskell Compan…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haskell_(company)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Medtronic plc is an American-Irish medical device company. The company's legal and executive headquarters are in Ireland, while its operational headquarters are in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Medtronic re…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medtronic
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Verily Life Sciences LLC also known as Verily (formerly Google Life Sciences), is Alphabet Inc.'s research organization devoted to the study of life sciences. The organization was formerly a division …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verily
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 7: “Shamso Ahmed Hassan, 55, and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, 25... submitted millions of dollars in fake claims to Minnesota’s Early Intensive Development and Behavioral Intervention Program [EIDBI] between May 2020 and December 2024”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources identify Shamso Ahmed Hassan (55) and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf (25) and specify the EIDBI program and the timeframe (May 2020 to December 2024).
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Between May 2020 and December 2024, according to federal prosecutors, the pair submitted approximately $46.6 million in claims to Minnesota’s Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention …
https://www.oann.com/newsroom/dhs-2-minn-residents-arrested-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Hassan is also listed as an employee and lead biller for Smart Therapy Center, and was responsible for submitting claims to Medicaid. The pair are said to have carried otu a scheme to defraud health c…
https://www.express.co.uk/news/us/2210816/autism-therapy-cen…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Shamso Ahmed Hassan, 55, and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, 25, were arrested May 21 and hit with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, eight counts of health care fraud, and two counts of money laundering.
https://www.theunredacted.co/minnesota-duo-busted-in-46m-aut…
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Claim 8: “Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Yusuf — both of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources explicitly state that both Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf are from Brooklyn Park, Minnesota.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 28, 2026 ... Two Minnesota fraudsters allegedly swindled more than $21 million in funding earmarked for autism services through two bogus companies and ...
https://nypost.com/2026/05/28/us-news/minnesota-pair-bilked-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 ... Of that amount in allegedly fraudulent claims, Minnesota Medicaid paid about $21.2 million. Shamso Ahmed Hassan, 55, and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, 25 ...
https://signalscv.com/2026/05/15-accused-in-90m-minnesota-fr…
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web search NEUTRAL — “They now face charges of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, EIGHT counts of health care fraud, and TWO counts of money laundering. Their Medicaid fraud ...
https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/state-addressing-tax-dol…
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Claim 9: “Between 2020 and 2021, she claimed the center served almost 200,000 meals to kids, for which she claimed $465,000”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to support the claim regarding 200,000 meals and $465,000.
schedule
Claim 10: “The recent indictments were among 15 unveiled by the Justice Department Thursday in connection with more than $90 million of stolen taxpayer funding for fraudulent services in Minnesota”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info
Claim 11: “Hassan and Yusuf... enrolled with the health department as Level II providers of autism services through the EIDBI, with Yusuf eventually upgrading to become a Level I provider on Jan. 1, 2024”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the arrests and names are corroborated, the specific detail about Yusuf upgrading to a Level I provider on Jan 1, 2024, is not explicitly detailed in the provided evidence snippets, though the general context of the fraud is present.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 28, 2026 ... Paul on charges of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, eight counts of health care fraud, and two counts of money laundering. Hassan was a ...
https://www.instagram.com/p/DY43jJyEWI-/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The new indictment against Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Yusuf — both of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota — include allegations against co-conspirator 1 and 2, whose ...
https://www.aol.com/articles/minnesota-pair-bilked-21-millio…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Dec 3, 2025 ... Two Minnesota residents have been arrested in connection with a $21 million Medicaid fraud scheme. Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf ...
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DR0jN2vj99U/?hl=en
info
Claim 12: “Hassan is also accused of scamming both adult and child food benefits programs by claiming Smart Therapy was serving 300 children both breakfast and lunch seven days a week”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence snippets focus heavily on the Medicaid/EIDBI fraud; the specific claim regarding food benefit programs and 300 children is not explicitly corroborated across multiple independent sources in the provided text.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Hanaan Mursal Yusuf (l=Left) and Shamso Ahmed Hassan (Right) were arrested. | GETTY/DHS. The duo schemed to defraud a health care benefit programme by submitting the counterfeit claims – all over the …
https://www.gbnews.com/news/us/benefits-fraudsters-medicaid-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — According to the indictment, Shamso Ahmed Hassan was one of several owners of Smart Therapy Center and Star Autism Center. As part of the scheme, she submitted false claims to Minnesota Medicaid's Ear…
https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/autism-fraud-shamso-a…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The court documents describe one defendant, Shamso Ahmed Hassan, as having an ownership stake in both companies. It says that the other, Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, was an employee of Smart Therapy. The char…
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/21/us/politics/medicaid-frau…
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.