A Minneapolis daycare facility exposed in independent journalist Nick Shirley’s viral investigation is facing new scrutiny after Internet users noticed what appeared to be stock images displayed throughout the building during a media walkthrough intended to rebut fraud allegations.
ABC Learning Center was one of several Somali-run facilities highlighted in Shirley’s reporting, which showed locations that appeared inactive despite receiving significant public funding.
The center reportedly received roughly $1.04 million in taxpayer money through Minnesota’s Child Care Assistance Program in the 2025 fiscal year alone.
In response to the criticism, daycare director Ahmed Hasan invited Associated Press reporters inside the facility and rejected claims of wrongdoing.
“There’s no fraud happening here,” Hasan insisted.
He told the outlet that the center is open daily and maintains records to document operations.
Hasan, who is Somali, said 56 children are enrolled and that the center has been subjected to repeated state compliance checks.
He also said staff have received harassing phone calls since Shirley’s video went viral.
But images from the walkthrough quickly drew attention online for an unexpected reason.
Viewers pointed out that walls inside the daycare appeared to display printouts of stock-style family photos, including a collage mounted beneath a banner labeled “science,” despite the images not depicting scientific themes.
Users on X questioned whether the images were generic display prints or AI-generated placeholders, with some speculating they were default inserts sold with picture frames.
Others questioned whether the photos were covering up items or materials beneath them, noting what they described as unusual placement along the wall.
Notably, the images partially covered the word “science” on the wall, leading to questions about what else had been concealed.
WATCH:
The discussion unfolded against the backdrop of a widening fraud controversy that has placed Minnesota at the center of a national crackdown on childcare funding abuse tied to individuals within the state’s Somali community.
The Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) confirmed last week that federal officials have ordered the state to provide records on providers and recipients of childcare subsidy payments by January 9 or risk losing federal funding.
Deputy Health and Human Services Secretary Jim O’Neill previously announced a freeze on childcare payments and pressed Gov. Tim Walz to conduct audits of facilities flagged in Shirley’s reporting.
Under the weight of the scandal, Walz has since announced that he will not seek reelection as investigations continue into what federal officials have described as widespread fraud schemes spanning multiple public programs.
DCYF said it carried out on-site inspections at nine daycare facilities featured in the reports, including ABC Learning Center, and said investigators found the centers “operating as expected,” according to WCCO. Children were present at eight of the nine locations during the visits; one center was closed at the time.
The department said investigators gathered evidence and initiated further review as part of the process.
ABC Learning Center remains among the facilities whose operations and funding records are now subject to heightened state and federal scrutiny as authorities continue their probe into the broader childcare fraud scandal.
READ MORE – Ad Emerges for ‘Child Actors’ to Fill Minnesota ‘Daycare’ amid Somali Fraud Scandal
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