Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent returned to Minnesota to deliver a clear message: the era of unchecked fraud is over. America is a generous country, and the compassion of our people imposes a corresponding duty on our government. That is why I visited Minnesota in January to make clear that the U.S. Treasury is deploying every tool to bring an end to this egregious, unchecked fraud and hold perpetrators to account.
Over the past year, Treasury returned $175 million in payments that would have gone to deceased individuals and expanded the Do Not Pay access from 4 to 99 percent of federal programs. Further, we’ve stopped almost $190 million and returned over $100 million in funds to U.S. victims of overseas fraud, ordered an audit of approximately $9 billion in Treasury contracts, and together with our partners at the IRS, proposed stronger eligibility checks for health insurance tax credits.
These actions form one front of a whole-of-government effort led by Vice President Vance. The Vice President’s task force first convened in March, and he has worked tirelessly to restore vigilance and responsible stewardship in the management of public money. Since January 2025, the Trump administration has uncovered more than $260 billion in fraud, prevented $72 billion in taxpayers’ funds from going out the door to illicit actors annually, and brought enforcement actions against nearly $60 billion. Nowhere is the work more urgent than here in Minnesota.
In the weeks following my visit, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN, issued a geographic targeting order to trace criminal networks that divert funds overseas and ensure that taxpayer dollars go to the American people, not terror groups like Al-Shabaab. We have ongoing investigations at home and abroad into Al-Shabaab, its networks, and its enablers. Since the start of the Trump administration, FinCEN data have also supported the law enforcement effort that led to the arrest and charging of 115 fraudsters, as well as 75 convictions and nearly 3,000 subpoenas across Minnesota. And just yesterday, IRS CI assisted with investigative activity at several sites suspected of fraud
The numbers speak for themselves. Billions that once vanished into waste, overseas scams, and criminal networks are now being clawed back and blocked at the source. Minnesota, long a hotspot for large-scale fraud schemes, is seeing real enforcement after years of looking the other way. Taxpayers are finally getting a government that treats their money as something that must be protected, not an open invitation for abuse.
Scott Bessent Cracks Down on Minnesota Fraud: $260 Billion Uncovered, Dead Payments Halted, Al-Shabaab Networks Targeted
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent returned to Minnesota to deliver a clear message: the era of unchecked fraud is over. America is a generous country, and the compassion of our people imposes a corresponding duty on our government. That is why I visited Minnesota in January to make clear that the U.S. Treasury is deploying every tool to bring an end to this egregious, unchecked fraud and hold perpetrators to account.
Over the past year, Treasury returned $175 million in payments that would have gone to deceased individuals and expanded the Do Not Pay access from 4 to 99 percent of federal programs. Further, we’ve stopped almost $190 million and returned over $100 million in funds to U.S. victims of overseas fraud, ordered an audit of approximately $9 billion in Treasury contracts, and together with our partners at the IRS, proposed stronger eligibility checks for health insurance tax credits.
These actions form one front of a whole-of-government effort led by Vice President Vance. The Vice President’s task force first convened in March, and he has worked tirelessly to restore vigilance and responsible stewardship in the management of public money. Since January 2025, the Trump administration has uncovered more than $260 billion in fraud, prevented $72 billion in taxpayers’ funds from going out the door to illicit actors annually, and brought enforcement actions against nearly $60 billion. Nowhere is the work more urgent than here in Minnesota.
In the weeks following my visit, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN, issued a geographic targeting order to trace criminal networks that divert funds overseas and ensure that taxpayer dollars go to the American people, not terror groups like Al-Shabaab. We have ongoing investigations at home and abroad into Al-Shabaab, its networks, and its enablers. Since the start of the Trump administration, FinCEN data have also supported the law enforcement effort that led to the arrest and charging of 115 fraudsters, as well as 75 convictions and nearly 3,000 subpoenas across Minnesota. And just yesterday, IRS CI assisted with investigative activity at several sites suspected of fraud.
The numbers speak for themselves. Billions that once vanished into waste, overseas scams, and criminal networks are now being clawed back and blocked at the source. Minnesota, long a hotspot for large-scale fraud schemes, is seeing real enforcement after years of looking the other way. Taxpayers are finally getting a government that treats their money as something that must be protected, not an open invitation for abuse.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent returned to Minnesota to deliver a clear message: the era of unchecked fraud is over. America is a generous country, and the compassion of our people imposes a corresponding duty on our government. That is why I visited Minnesota in January to make clear that the U.S. Treasury is deploying every tool to bring an end to this egregious, unchecked fraud and hold perpetrators to account.
Over the past year, Treasury returned $175 million in payments that would have gone to deceased individuals and expanded the Do Not Pay access from 4 to 99 percent of federal programs. Further, we’ve stopped almost $190 million and returned over $100 million in funds to U.S. victims of overseas fraud, ordered an audit of approximately $9 billion in Treasury contracts, and together with our partners at the IRS, proposed stronger eligibility checks for health insurance tax credits.
These actions form one front of a whole-of-government effort led by Vice President Vance. The Vice President’s task force first convened in March, and he has worked tirelessly to restore vigilance and responsible stewardship in the management of public money. Since January 2025, the Trump administration has uncovered more than $260 billion in fraud, prevented $72 billion in taxpayers’ funds from going out the door to illicit actors annually, and brought enforcement actions against nearly $60 billion. Nowhere is the work more urgent than here in Minnesota.
In the weeks following my visit, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN, issued a geographic targeting order to trace criminal networks that divert funds overseas and ensure that taxpayer dollars go to the American people, not terror groups like Al-Shabaab. We have ongoing investigations at home and abroad into Al-Shabaab, its networks, and its enablers. Since the start of the Trump administration, FinCEN data have also supported the law enforcement effort that led to the arrest and charging of 115 fraudsters, as well as 75 convictions and nearly 3,000 subpoenas across Minnesota. And just yesterday, IRS CI assisted with investigative activity at several sites suspected of fraud.
The numbers speak for themselves. Billions that once vanished into waste, overseas scams, and criminal networks are now being clawed back and blocked at the source. Minnesota, long a hotspot for large-scale fraud schemes, is seeing real enforcement after years of looking the other way. Taxpayers are finally getting a government that treats their money as something that must be protected, not an open invitation for abuse.,-DTP