Fraud Charges in Minnesota Autism Treatment Scheme

Federal authorities have accused Minnesota parents of being paid up to $1,500 each to enroll their children in sham treatments at two autism centers. This scheme has been described as the largest of its kind involving fraud and money laundering.

The indictment claims that four individuals offered kickbacks ranging from $300 to $1,500 per month to parents, particularly from the local Somali community, in exchange for enrolling their children in unnecessary treatments at Smart Therapy Center and Starr Autism Center.

While it’s uncertain how many children were falsely classified as autistic in the Minneapolis-St. Cloud area, the fraudulent claims allegedly reached a staggering $46 million in medical bills over five years.

According to court documents, these kickbacks—informally referred to as “computers”—were camouflaged as checks written to employees of the facility and family members, who then cashed them to pay the parents each month.

Additionally, it’s been revealed that the defendants were involved in appropriating funds from other taxpayer-sponsored programs to claim payments for hundreds of thousands of meals provided to children at Smart Therapy.

Shamso Ahmed Hassan, co-owner of Smart Therapy, and employee Hanan Mursal Yusuf were charged for defrauding Medicaid and state funds meant for autism treatment, amounting to $46.6 million, according to federal prosecutors.

Court records reveal that these two were responsible for $21.2 million in autism benefits through fraudulent claims connected to their centers, both of which had their licenses revoked earlier this year.

Asha Farhan Hassan and Abdinajib Hassan Yusuf had previously accepted plea deals in connection with the fraud case and are awaiting sentencing; they appear to be siblings.

The new charges against Shamso Hassan and Hanan Yusuf also name other co-conspirators, who align with the identities of Asha Hassan and Abdinajib Yusuf.

Specifically, these four are accused of defrauding the Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention (EIDBI) program, which covers autism-related services for individuals under 21.

From 2018 to 2025, spending in Minnesota’s EIDBI program skyrocketed from over $600,000 to more than $400 million, according to Justice Department officials.

Hassan and Yusuf registered with the Department of Health as providers of autism services, allowing Smart Therapy to charge higher fees for its offerings. In a previous indictment, Yusuf allegedly used $100,000 from the fraud to acquire a semi-truck and sent another $200,000 to Kenya.

Furthermore, Asha Hassan reportedly funneled large sums of money overseas and bought property in Kenya, as suggested by claims during her arrest last September.

Hassan was also accused of defrauding both adult and child food benefit programs by falsely asserting that her center had been providing meals to 300 children daily since December 2020. By April 2021, Smart Therapy claimed to be serving 1,200 meals a day, which prosecutors contended was tremendously exaggerated.

From 2020 to 2021, the indictment reveals that the center provided around 200,000 meals and charged $465,000 in reimbursement.

The licenses for Star Autism and Smart Therapy were revoked earlier this year. Records indicate that the individuals involved have problematic histories; for instance, Hassan previously operated a daycare center that lost its license due to child abuse allegations.

In 2017, surveillance footage captured an employee at her daycare harming children, resulting in significant legal troubles.

Yusuf also has a criminal past, with a conviction for providing false ID, which led to a fine.

Both Hassan and Yusuf made their first court appearance and were released without bail. The indictment is part of a more extensive investigation by the Justice Department that unveiled over $90 million in stolen taxpayer funds related to fraudulent services in Minnesota.

Attorneys for Yusuf declined to comment when approached for statements, and agents representing the Hassans did not respond to inquiries.