Fraudulent Minnesota Daycare Busses in Kids After Bombshell Investigatoin

A Minnesota daycare that drew national attention after appearing dormant despite receiving millions in public funds abruptly showed signs of activity this week, intensifying scrutiny as older surveillance footage resurfaced documenting alleged childcare fraud in the state.

The Quality “Learing” Center in Minneapolis, whose misspelled sign and empty parking lot were featured in a viral video by independent journalist Nick Shirley, appeared unusually busy on Monday, with dozens of children arriving at the facility. Neighbors said the sudden activity was striking and out of character.

“We’ve never seen kids go in there until today,” one nearby resident said, adding that the parking lot is typically empty and that many locals believed the daycare was no longer operating.

The timing has raised questions amid renewed attention to past fraud cases. Surveillance footage from a 2015 state investigation, made public in 2018 and recently resurfaced, shows parents bringing children into daycare facilities, signing them in, and then leaving with them minutes later. Investigators at the time said the practice allowed providers to bill the state for full days of childcare that were never provided. On some days captured in the footage, no children appeared at all, yet reimbursements were still claimed.

Authorities also alleged that some centers paid kickbacks to parents for participating. In one video, a man is seen handing an envelope to a parent, which investigators said appeared to be a cash payment tied to fraudulent billing.

The resurfacing of the footage has added context to the current controversy surrounding Minnesota’s childcare system, which is now under broad federal investigation. The probe spans multiple social service programs and follows estimates that billions of dollars in public funds may have been improperly claimed over several years.

Staff at the Quality “Learing” Center denied wrongdoing. Ali Ibrahim, the son of the owners, said the viral video misrepresented the facility’s operations and claimed the journalist arrived before opening hours. He acknowledged the spelling error on the sign but dismissed it as a design mistake.

The daycare has not been formally named as a defendant in the federal case. However, investigators have recently visited other childcare centers in the Minneapolis area, requesting attendance records and conducting site inspections.

Federal officials say the investigation is ongoing and caution that the issue extends beyond any single facility. As scrutiny intensifies, critics argue that the sudden appearance of children at previously quiet centers echoes patterns seen in earlier fraud cases, deepening concerns about systemic abuse rather than isolated misconduct.