In 2022, Somali refugee Abdullahi Ali moved out of a mobile home on the outskirts of Maine’s most populous city and into a 3,312 square foot luxury dwelling in the state’s second-wealthiest town. There was one problem: He bought the home the same year he was accused of overbilling the Maine Department of Health and Human Services to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Welfare fraud in Somali communities has dominated national headlines for months following a flood of alleged discrepancies in child care and autism assistance programs within Minnesota. Since then, lawmakers have initiated investigations into the issue, and the White House has assembled a dedicated anti-fraud task force.