Yes, yes, it involves Somalia again. So what else is new. On a day when Somali pirates are making the news by taking an American freighter, the FBI is raiding another source of funds for the chaotic Horn of Africa nation. From an AP story in the Star Tribune:
Federal agents searched three money-transfer businesses in Minneapolis on Wednesday, carrying away boxes of documents and copying computer hard drives in a quest for details of financial transactions between the U.S. and several African nations.
Agents searched Mustaqbal Express, also known as North American Money Transfer Inc.; Quran Express; and Aaran Financial.
[….]
A copy of a search warrant executed at Mustaqbal Express and obtained by The Associated Press said authorities were looking for documents, books, records, ledgers and other materials “relating to the transfer of money, currency or funds” to Somalia, Eritrea, Kenya, Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti and the United Arab Emirates from January 2007 to the present. It also sought documents on ownership and management of the business and lists of clients, calendars, bank checks, safe deposit box keys, and other materials.
I wonder if any of the food stamp fraud money we have written about so frequently is making it to Somalia (or other Muslim countries) in this way.
Omar said the office handles about $1 million to $1.5 million per month, and ships the money overseas — mostly to Somalia. Local immigrants also use the Minneapolis office to send money back home.
For new readers, the US State Department has admitted over 80,000 Somali refugees to the US in the last 25 years and then last year had to suspend family reunification because widespread immigration fraud was revealed through DNA testing.
* Minneapolis has been such a welcoming city for Somalis, just think about all the excitement you less-than-welcoming cities are missing.