A dozen people from Syria, Afghanistan, Sudan, Iraq and Somalia have been arrested in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud taxpayer-funded childcare subsidy programs of more than $10 million, federal officials said. The arrests took place early Thursday in San Diego, where more than 250 federal, state and local law enforcement officials took all 12 defendants into custody and executed 12 search warrants at homes allegedly being used as daycare facilities.
Attorney General Todd Blanche described the operations at the center of the case as “completely bogus daycare facilities.”
According to federal prosecutors, the defendants obtained California licenses to operate home childcare facilities and registered with Child Development Associates and the YMCA. Prosecutors allege they then submitted fraudulent attendance records in order to collect government subsidy payments for children they did not actually care for. Providers are required to document the dates and times children are in their care and to certify those records under penalty of perjury.
Investigators say surveillance footage contradicted the attendance records submitted by the providers. In one case detailed in the complaint, defendant Abdulrahman Ayman Alawad allegedly reported providing daily childcare in March and April 2026, claiming to have cared for 23 children in March and 25 in April. But surveillance covering 57 days allegedly showed children entering or leaving the facility on only one occasion — the same day a state inspector arrived for an unannounced inspection.
In another case, a complaint against defendant Turkiya Mamdouh Alawad alleges border records show she left the country around Jan. 1, 2024, and did not return until around Jan. 30 of that year. Prosecutors allege she nonetheless submitted attendance records for that period and subsequently received eight payments from CDA and YMCA totaling $14,970.
Federal officials said each of the 12 defendants is accused of collecting between $538,000 and $1.2 million over periods ranging from several months to multiple years. Alawad allegedly received more than $300,000 in 2025 alone, and several other defendants allegedly collected more than $1 million each.
Robb R. Breeden, a special agent in charge with federal investigators, said, “Shameless attempts to steal taxpayer-funded childcare funds for personal gain endanger support for some of our nation’s most vulnerable children.”
Authorities said the 12 cases are being prosecuted separately but allege the defendants used essentially the same method — submitting false attendance claims to collect government payments meant to help low-income families afford childcare.
The defendants range in age from 22 to 63. All face charges of wire fraud, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. Some defendants also face money-laundering charges carrying the same maximum penalties. Wire fraud generally involves using electronic communications, such as wire transfers or online submissions, as part of a scheme to defraud victims of money; money-laundering charges typically involve allegedly concealing or disguising the origins of funds obtained through illegal activity.
All 12 defendants have been charged but not convicted, and are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court. The cases are being handled as separate prosecutions, and further court proceedings are expected as the matters move through the federal justice system.
Source: New York Post
