Somali-Kenyan Woman Charged in US Sh2.1 Billion Wire Fraud, Bought Luxury Properties in Nairobi

Nairobi, Kenya — A Somali-Kenyan woman has been charged in the United States over a massive $14 million (Sh2.1 billion) fraud, with prosecutors revealing that she used part of the ill-gotten money to purchase luxury properties in Nairobi.

Asha Farhan Hassan, 28, owner of Smart Therapy, a Minneapolis-based autism treatment clinic, allegedly submitted false claims to Minnesota’s Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention (EIDBI) program, which funds services for children and young adults with autism spectrum disorder.

Hassan also faces allegations of defrauding federal child nutrition programs out of $465,000 through the now-defunct nonprofit Feeding Our Future.

According to court filings, Hassan established Smart Therapy in 2019 and recruited unqualified “behavioral technicians” — often young relatives with no certification — to treat children.

She allegedly inflated service hours and billed Medicaid for children who received little or no care.

Between 2020 and 2021, she claimed nearly 200,000 meals served that were never provided to children, pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Prosecutors say Hassan shared the stolen money with other business partners and transferred a significant portion overseas, including to Kenya, where she bought real estate in Nairobi.

She reportedly paid parents cash kickbacks ranging from $300 to $1,500 per child to ensure continued enrollment at the clinic.

The scale of the fraud was staggering. Claims under the EIDBI program grew from $1.7 million in 2017 to $400 million in 2023, though Medicaid reimbursed only half.

Acting Minnesota U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson said the case is part of a web of interconnected frauds that have “stolen billions of dollars in taxpayer money.”

Hassan is expected to plead guilty, having waived her right to a grand jury review. U.S. authorities have not revealed the exact value of her Nairobi assets, but sources familiar with the case indicate they include multiple properties in prime neighborhoods.