Wash. State AG: Journalists Who Probe Day Cares Face Hate-crime Fees
Washington state’s attorney general has warned that independent journalists who investigate Somali day care fraud in the Evergreen State might be charged with a hate crime.
Nick Brown, the state’s top law enforcement official, is apparently worried that those journalists will do for Washington’s Somalis what journalist Nick Shirley did for Minnesota’s: expose them as fraudsters who skin the taxpayers.
And he’s probably worried for good reason. Independent “gonzo journalists” Chris Sims and DannyRebel333 did indeed show up at so-called day cares and found what one would suspect: “no sign of kids.”
They also found that a majority of the Somali day care centers had “serious violations.”
KOMO News in Seattle found almost 300 day care centers in Seattle that list Somali as their first language.
“Hate Crimes”
Brown’s X post was blunt: Don’t investigate fraud independently, or else.
“My office has received outreach from members of the Somali community after reports of home-based daycare providers being harassed and accused of fraud with little to no fact-checking,” he wrote:
We are in touch with the state Department of Children, Youth, and Families regarding the claims being pushed online and the harassment reported by daycare providers.
Showing up on someone’s porch, threatening, or harassing them isn’t an investigation. Neither is filming minors who may be in the home. This is unsafe and potentially dangerous behavior. I encourage anyone experiencing threats or harassment to either contact local law enforcement or our office’s Hate Crimes & Bias Incident Hotline at 1-855-225-1010 or http://atg.wa.gov/report-hate.
He added that concerned citizens can report fraud, and that fraudsters will be “held accountable.”
Independent Investigative Findings
If true, his office might wish to investigate two day cares that Sims and his partner investigated. On December 30, they showed up at a Somali day care that “was very unhappy to see me.”
“There was no sign of kids or being a Daycare facility,” he continued:
@DannyRebel333 and I went to 6 more Somali Childcare locations today in the Kent, Wa area.
I was told [by] a few they weren’t Daycares despite receiving tax payer dollars.
One yelled “Call the police” behind the door.
A day later, “Another Somali ‘Daycare’ was Very Angry to see me,” Sims reported:
There was no sign of kids, or even being a Daycare facility.
This “Daycare” – Hani Family Childcare LLC Has Received $770,072 since 2023 in tax payer dollars. – Kent, Wa
She yelled “Call the police”
Sims also revealed that “Nearly Every 🇸🇴 Somali Owned Daycare in the South King County, WA area has numerous Violations Categorized as ⚠️Serious Risk Level” that all are listed in “subsidy participation.”
U.S. Attorney General Responds
As for Brown, Harmeet Dhillon, assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights, warned that “ANY state official who chills or threatens to chill a journalist’s 1A rights will have some ‘splainin to do.”
“@CivilRights takes potential violations of 18 USC § 242 seriously!,” she continued. “Govern yourselves accordingly!”
The mayor of Seattle, Katie Wilson, received the same warning over her post on X:
I stand with the Somali childcare providers who have experienced targeted harassment, and condemn the surveillance campaign promoted by extremist influencers.
Wilson elaborated in a lengthy statement typical of far-left Democrats.
“In Seattle, we believe in solidarity, and our city will not tolerate anyone who is trying to intimidate, harass, or film Somali child care providers,” she wrote:
Such behavior is unacceptable and puts children and families at risk.
Family home childcare programs are places of care, safety, and trust. They are privately operated businesses, not public spaces. And they are regulated by the government, not by private individuals or groups.
As mayor, I will work with the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs, the Department of Education and Early Learning, the Seattle Police Department and other city departments to ensure child care providers in our city are safe, secure, and protected.
How or even whether Wilson will protect taxpayers from the African predators she left unsaid.
KOMO Report
Riffing off the Minnesota scandal and Shirley report about Somali fraudsters, Seattle’s KOMO News “found 283 child care centers in our state that list Somali as their primary language.”
The FBI would not comment on whether it was investigating fraud in Washington, and state child care officials offered a bland statement that crooks who rob the taxpayers must return the money.
“The agency did not clarify how much money the state of Washington grants to child care companies annually, but did say to ensure program integrity it randomly performs audits of all child care provider types,” the station reported.
Of course, “the Somali community in Seattle has reported that it has received backlash,” KOMO reported:
“As a Somali and as a small business provider, we are really scared,” said Nafisa Samatar, executive director of the Somali Independent Business Alliance (SIBA). “People are afraid.”
She noted that the backlash affects Somali-run businesses across the board, from restaurants to day care centers.
Gov. Bob Ferguson met with state and local leaders, including Somali community representatives, to discuss their concerns Monday afternoon in Seattle.
Ferguson shared photos of the meeting on social media, emphasizing the importance of diversity and condemning harmful rhetoric.
The KOMO report did not include evidence of a “backlash.”