Minnesota’s Republican Congressional delegation and state lawmakers are calling on the U.S. Attorney’s office to investigate whether fraud schemes helped fund terrorism after President Donald Trump pledged that he would end temporary legal protections for Somali immigrants in Minnesota.

Trump’s move and GOP calls for an investigation come on the heels of a report from a conservative think tank alleging that some of the millions of dollars stolen from the state through fraud ended up in the hands of the Somalia-based Islamist terrorist group al-Shabaab.

It’s not the first time there have been allegations of a link between fraud in Minnesota and terrorism.

The same premise was at the center of a similar 2018 local news story that spurred action at the state Capitol and a nonpartisan state investigation that found no definitive connection between fraud and terrorism.

Citing unnamed sources and a former counterterrorism investigator, writers for City Journal, a publication of the Manhattan Institute, claim that some money sent back from Minnesota to Somalia through informal networks likely would have benefited the group, which controls large swaths of Somalia.

The report shows no definite link between hundreds of millions of dollars in fraud this decade in Minnesota and terrorist groups, though it asserts that al-Shabaab received cuts of money transferred from the U.S. to Somalia through the hawala system, an informal money transfer network used by the Somali diaspora.

City Journal’s source for this claim is Glenn Kerns, a former detective with the Seattle Police Department, who investigated hawala networks while working with a federal terrorism task force in the 2010s.

In 2018, then-retired Kerns shared similar findings with KMSP-TV, or Fox 9 — day care fraud in Minnesota and money transferred to areas controlled by al-Shabaab in Somalia. An agency whistleblower claimed $100 million in stolen tax dollars had gone overseas.

Legislative auditor investigation in 2018

A subsequent report by the nonpartisan Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor couldn’t substantiate claims that money went to terrorist groups overseas. The 2019 report found fraud, though there was no evidence that it reached $100 million.

OLA did acknowledge, however, that money obtained through fraud sent overseas could end up going to terrorists.

“We found that federal regulatory and law enforcement agencies are concerned that terrorist organizations in certain countries, including Somalia, obtain and use money sent from the United States by immigrants and refugees to family and friends in those countries,” the report said.

City Journal authors Ryan Thorpe and Christopher Rufo, a conservative activist and author who rose to prominence as an opponent of critical race theory in American education, cite Kerns’ work as a piece of evidence that money continues to fund the Somali terrorist group, as well as two unnamed sources.

For every dollar that is transferred from the Twin Cities back to Somalia, “Al-Shabaab is . . . taking a cut of it,” said one unnamed source described as a former member of the Minneapolis Joint Terrorism Task Force.

A second unnamed source claimed “the largest funder of Al-Shabaab is the Minnesota taxpayer.” It’s unclear, though, how much money the group might have received.

GOP calls for investigation

Members of the Minnesota Senate and House Republican caucuses sent letters to U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen on Monday asking Minnesota federal prosecutors to investigate the allegations. Minnesota U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer, U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach, U.S. Rep. Brad Finstad and U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber sent a similar letter on Friday.

Dozens of fraud cases have emerged in Minnesota in recent years, with much of it centered at the state’s Department of Human Services. Acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson estimated in July that fraud in the state could top $1 billion.

In the largest case, federal prosecutors allege a scheme centered around the nonprofit Feeding Our Future defrauded the government of $250 million in federal funds from a pandemic-era meal program. In that case, the money was administered by the Minnesota Department of Education.

“The notion that these dollars could be flowing to foreign terrorist organizations adds a truly disturbing additional element,” state House Republicans said in their letter. “If confirmed to be true, immediate action must be taken at the state and federal level to crack down on remittances and other payments that are making their way to terrorist organizations.”

DFL leaders condemn Trump’s move on protections

The office of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said it has not heard anything about the allegations from state or federal law enforcement. The U.S. Attorney’s office did not respond to requests for comment.

Democratic-Farmer-Labor leaders have condemned Trump’s pledge to revoke temporary protective status for Somali migrants in Minnesota, claiming the administration was using the report to pursue deportations as part of an anti-Muslim and xenophobic agenda.

Dozens, including U.S. Reps. Betty McCollum, Ilhan Omar, DFL legislators and activists gathered at the Capitol on Monday to address reporters. Omar said incidents of fraud could not be blamed on the Somali community at large.

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“There is not a single (piece of) evidence that the president or his cronies have put forth that there are any single resource from taxpayers in Minnesota that has gone to aid and abet terrorism,” she said. “That language puts the lives of Somalis not only in Minnesota but across the country in danger. And if the president believed that and he had evidence, he would take people to court.”

A little over 700 Somalis have temporary protective status nationwide, with around 400 in Minnesota. The status protects immigrants from deportation. There are more than 80,000 Somalis in Minnesota, the most of any state.

The Gophers punched a ticket to their Thanksgiving tournament title game with a win Monday, and with it, earned a matchup with a tournament team from a year ago.

Minnesota downed South Florida 57-45 in the opening game of the Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship in Nassau, Bahamas.

Gophers guard Amaya Battle dribbles the ball during Minnesota’s 57-45 win over South Florida in the first round of the Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship on Monday, Nov. 24, 2025 in Nassau, Bahamas (Meghan Bielich / Gophers Athletics)

The Gophers will meet Alabama in the Junkanoo Division title bout Wednesday. The Crimson Tide (6-0), who beat Harvard, 80-60, in the other matchup, were a No. 5 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament who reached the second round before falling to Maryland in double overtime.

That could very well serve as Minnesota’s best nonconference game on its slate this season, and is another chance for the Gophers to earn a quality win away from the confines of Williams Arena after Minnesota fell in Kansas last week.

Minnesota controlled the game from the outset against South Florida, utilizing a 12-0 run to take an early 18-4 lead. The Gophers led by 15 at the half and as many as 19 in the third frame.

Minnesota held South Florida to 33% shooting from the floor, including just 2 for 18 from distance. Fatou Diakite tallied 16 points to pace the Bulls (3-3), while the rest of South Florida’s starters went a combined 6 for 30 from the field.

The Gophers weren’t much better offensively, shooting 34% from the field. But Minnesota did hit seven triples and turned the ball over 17 times to South Florida’s 20.

Grace Grocholski paced Minnesota with 14 points. She was one of three Gophers in double figures, along with Mara Braun — who had 11 points to go with two blocked shots — and Brylee Glenn, who had 10 points to go with four dimes.

Amaya Battle had nine points, five boards and two steals, while Sophie Hart grabbed 10 boards.

The Gophers (5-1) did also shoot 34% from the field and scored exactly 57 points against Kansas. Better offensive production will surely be needed Wednesday versus what Minnesota has delivered of late if the U is to contend with an opponent of Alabama’s ilk.

Minnesota is certainly capable of it, having scored 88-plus points in each of its first four games of the season.

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WILLMAR — Approximately 100 demonstrators gathered outside the Law Enforcement Center last week in Willmar as a show of support for immigrants caught in the dragnet of immigration enforcement done by federal authorities. They also shared stories of other immigrants they know and how they’ve helped grow and be a positive asset for the communities they live in.

The jail facility in Kandiyohi County is one of three detention facilities in Minnesota that hold individuals for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Community members of Willmar, Alexandria and some from Northfield had come as a show of solidarity and support for immigrants in their communities who feel threatened by current federal policies.

Toward the end of the vigil, demonstrators shouted toward the jail facility, “We are here!” in both English and Spanish.

Visitation Pastor Andres Albertsen, of Vinje Lutheran Church in Willmar, led prayer and shared his story of how current federal policies had conflicted with his own life. Others also shared their concerns, and stories of how immigrants had enriched their lives and the communities they live in.

Albertsen, an immigrant from Argentina who has been living in the U.S. since 2011, just recently became a naturalized citizen. He said the reason he had come to the demonstration was for his friend Edward.

He said that he and Edward immediately bonded over the fact that, like Albertsen, Edward spoke Spanish with an Argentinian accent. Although he was born in Peru, Edward had spent much of his life in Argentina before coming to Minnesota.

Edward was arrested in Willmar weeks ago, on Oct. 25.

According to Albertsen, a friend was giving Edward a ride to work that Saturday when they were blocked by four cars, two unmarked, two others marked. They were ordered to exit the vehicle and then asked for their papers. When the two said they didn’t have any, they were immediately taken into ICE custody.

It is not known if the two marked squads were affiliated with the Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office or the Willmar Police Department, Albertsen said.

A few days after the arrest, Albertsen received a call from a public service number; it was Edward telling him he was in jail. Albertsen said he believed Edward had called him because he has no family in the area.

“Now we know within a couple of days, he is gone,” Albertsen said of Edward. “He will be leaving the country.”

Others who traveled from as far as Northfield had come to show their support of Adán Núñez Gonzalez, a Northfield resident for more than 10 years, who was arrested several days earlier in the same city.

According to reporting by the Northfield News, three videos captured by witnesses, including Núñez Gonzalez’s 15-year-old son, show masked agents in plain clothes and bulletproof vests surrounding a vehicle and questioning its occupants. Agents broke the window and forcibly extracted and arrested Núñez Gonzalez from the passenger seat without ever showing a warrant or credentials, despite urging to do so from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

A GoFundMe for Núñez Gonzalez and his family has raised over $20,000 as of Saturday to help them challenge his detention.

Duane Franz, a Mountain Lake farmer, shared that he has been volunteering to drive immigrants to ICE check-ins, court hearings, and other appointments as they navigate the immigration court system.

He said earlier this year he drove two immigrants to the ICE facility in Sioux Falls, S.D., for what was supposed to be a routine check-in, as both men had applied for asylum in the United States.

However, as he waited for both men to return, he was informed that only one would be going back home. When he asked why agents were holding the other man in custody, they simply told him that he had to stay with the agents, according to Franz.

“That was the first time that ever happened to me,” Franz said, explaining he had been driving others to these appointments for over a year. Franz said the experience shook him up, explaining that the man held was a farm worker with a wife and children who had been living in southwest Minnesota for about three years.

Albertsen said, in his closing prayer, that we need to regard immigrants as “members of our human family,” adding that their dignity is directly connected to our own.

By JOSH FUNK

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Tyson Foods’ decision to close a beef plant that employs nearly one third of residents of Lexington, Nebraska, could devastate the small city and undermine the profits of ranchers nationwide.

Closing a single slaughterhouse might not seem significant, but the Lexington plant employs roughly 3,200 people in the city of 11,000 and has the capacity to slaughter some 5,000 head of cattle a day. Tyson also plans to cut one of the two shifts at a plant in Amarillo, Texas, and eliminate 1,700 jobs there. Together those two moves will reduce beef processing capacity nationwide by 7-9%.

Consumers may not see prices change much at the grocery store over the next six months because all the cattle that are now being prepared for slaughter will still be processed, potentially just at a different plant. But in the long run, beef prices may continue to climb even higher than the current record highs — caused by a variety of factors from drought to tariffs — unless American ranchers decide to raise more cattle, which they have little incentive to do.

An increase in beef imports from Brazil, like President Donald Trump encouraged last week by slashing tariffs on the South American country, may help insulate consumers while ranchers and feedlots struggle with high costs and falling prices.

Here’s what we know about the impact of the plant closure and the changing tariffs:

A ‘gut punch’ to the community

Clay Patton, vice president of the Lexington-area Chamber of Commerce said Monday that Tyson’s announcement Friday felt like a “gut punch” to the community in the Platte River Valley that serves as a key link in the agricultural production chain.

When it opened in 1990, the Lexington plant that Tyson later acquired revitalized and remade the formerly dwindling town by attracting thousands of immigrants to work there and nearly doubling the population.

When the plant closes in January, the ripple effects will be felt throughout the community, undermining many first-generation business owners and the investment in new housing, Patton said. Tyson said it will offer Lexington workers the chance to move to take open jobs at one of its other plants if they are willing to uproot their families for jobs hundreds of miles away.

“I’m hopeful that we can come through this and we’ll actually become better on the other side of it,” Patton said.

Elmer Armijo was struck by how established the community when he moved to Lexington last summer to lead First United Methodist Church. He described solid job security, good schools and health care systems and urban development — all in doubt now.

“People are completely worried,” Armijo said. “The economy in Lexington is based in Tyson.”

Many local churches, Armijo’s included, are already offering counseling, food pantries and gas vouchers for community members.

Cattle prices falling in response

The prospect of losing a major buyer for cattle and increasing imports from Brazil, which already accounted for 24% of the beef brought into the country this year, only adds to doubts about how profitable the U.S. cattle business might be over the next several years, making it less likely that American ranchers will commit to raising more animals.

“There’s a just a lack of confidence in the industry right now. And producers are unwilling to make the investment to rebuild,” said Bill Bullard, president of Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America.

Boosting imports from Brazil has the potential to affect the market — much more than Trump’s suggestion to increase imports from Argentina — since the country sends more beef to America than any other. But for steak lovers, the sky-high price of the cut isn’t likely to be affected regardless, as most imports are lean trimmings that get mixed into ground beef.

Kansas State University agricultural economist Glynn Tonsor said it’s hard to predict whether imports will continue to account for roughly 20% of the U.S. beef supply next year. He pointed out that Trump’s tariffs have changed several times since they were announced in the spring and could quickly change again.

The only constant in the equation has been that consumers have continued to buy beef even as prices soar. Tonsor said on average Americans will consume 59 pounds (27 kilograms) of beef per person this year.

Tyson faces continued losses in the beef business

There has long been excess capacity in the meat business nationwide, meaning the nation’s slaughterhouses could handle many more cattle than they are processing. That has only been made worse in recent years as the government has encouraged more smaller companies to open slaughterhouses to compete with Tyson and the other giants that dominate the beef business.

Tyson expects to lose more than $600 million on beef production this year after already reporting $720 million of red ink in beef over the past two years.

Tonsor said it was inevitable that at least one beef plant would close. Afterward, Tyson’s remaining plants will be able to operate more efficiently at closer to full capacity.

Ernie Goss, an economist at Creighton University in Omaha, said the Lexington plant likely wasn’t measuring up in the industry increasingly reliant on technological advancements that enhance productivity.

“It’s very difficult to renovate or make the old plant fit the new world,” said Goss, who completed an impact study for a new Sustainable Beef plant. The Lexington facility “just wasn’t competitive right now in today’s environment in terms of output per worker.”

___

Associated Press writer Hannah Fingerhut contributed to this report from Des Moines, Iowa.