A TSA worker receives a box of food at a mobile food pantry set up for federal workers affected by the government shutdown, at the Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport in Minneapolis, October 29, 2025. © REUTERS/Tim Evans
(New York, NY) – It seems as though the fraud that’s taken place in Minneapolis is a bottomless pit. Whether it’s fake meals that were never actually made (for food assistance programs), or child care centers with non-existent children, the immigration-linked scandal has stolen an estimated $1 billion from US taxpayers.
Now, there’s new evidence suggesting that there’s been a mad rush to get cash out of Minnesota, after the disgusting crimes have been exposed. John Solomon’s Just the News published a report recently that revealed the the Transportation Security Administration has flagged approximately $700 million in declared US cash being carried out of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport over the past two years (2024-2025). This cash was detected in passengers’ luggage via TSA scanners and was legally declared under US regulations requiring disclosure of amounts over $10,000 when leaving the country.
Still, many are asking the obvious question — where are these millions of dollars coming from? What is the major industry or enterprise fueling the foreign outflows of cash? The clear implication is that massive amounts of fraud have bilked US taxpayers out of money that’s then being removed from the country.
Reporting from JTN and the Tennessee Star suggests the flights of cash are linked to Somali-American couriers, often traveling in groups of two to four people. They typically travel from MSP to cities such as Amsterdam or Dubai — with the money ultimately destined for Somalia or other Middle Eastern locations, via informal “hawala” money transfer systems.
Perhaps most fascinatingly, the amounts of cash being removed from the country via Minneapolis’ largest airport is much larger than other major US airports. Even spots linked to international commerce — including JFK Airport, LAX, and Chicago’s O’Hare do not see as much cash flow through their terminals. In fact, the cash outflow from MSP is 10 to 100 times larger than what’s recorded in comparable hubs.
To date, immediate seizures of cash have occurred at the airports where it was declared, but federal agencies like the FBI and Department of Homeland Security are now investigating potential ties to money laundering, welfare fraud, and other illicit activities. The numbers are staggering: according to TSA data obtained via Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, the flagged cash totaled about $342 million in 2024 and $349 million in 2025, averaging nearly $1 million per day.
Solomon’s reporting has focused on the fact Minneapolis is the center of this cash exodus. Noting the scale of the operation, he said “The Minneapolis Airport [TSA was flagging daily] 99 times larger than all the cash that was…going out of New York’s JFK.” JTN says officials have noted that these couriers, often Somali immigrants or their associates, were using the airport as a “foreign ATM” in order to send cash home to family and friends — but the volume raises red flags in terms of the potential connection to fraud.
Now, the cash movements are being probed in connection with ongoing federal investigations into large-scale fraud in Minnesota. This inquiry is probing COVID-era child nutrition and welfare programs, such as Feeding Our Future. Over $250 million in taxpayer funds were allegedly defrauded in these schemes, with some proceeds suspected to have been laundered and sent overseas. DHS officials reportedly confirmed to Just the News that the couriers’ activities align with patterns seen in these fraud cases, where money is converted to cash and exported. One DHS source was quoted as saying: “We’re looking at whether some of this money is tied to the fraud schemes we’ve been investigating.”
FOX 9 in Minneapolis has done significant reporting on this situation. Back in 2018 the network first highlighted similar cash outflows, as tied to Somali daycare fraud.
If these outflows of cash are specifically tied to fraud, this could lead to indictments, asset seizures, and reforms in airport cash monitoring. There are also broader implications for US immigration policies, welfare programs, and international money flows. Still, one TSA official made it clear the agency is not “assuming all this money is dirty, but the patterns warrant a closer look.”
Listen 🎧 and read 📚 about the Minneapolis fraud:
Did Minnesota Governor Tim Walz ever address the fraud or apologize?
