ST. PAUL, Minn. — State prosecutors have filed eight felony charges against a prominent Minneapolis-area entrepreneur once celebrated by state officials, alleging his involvement in a $1 million healthcare billing scheme linked to an underground sex-trafficking ring.
Salman Ahmed Elmi faces three counts of aiding and abetting by swindle and five counts of aiding and abetting by false representation. Investigators allege Elmi used his business, Reva Health, to systematically bill Medicaid for illegal or never-provided healthcare services. Court documents show the state agency that processed those fraudulent payouts previously awarded Elmi the title of “outstanding refugee.”
Law enforcement officials state the healthcare scam operated alongside a violent sex-trafficking enterprise. According to charging documents, two co-conspirators in the billing scheme ran brothels that targeted vulnerable young women. The network recruited women facing homelessness or addiction, leased apartments in their names using forged financial records, and forced them into commercial sex work.
Investigators revealed that Elmi and his associates then stole the victims’ personal identities. They used the stolen information to submit false claims to Medicaid, redirecting state funds directly into corporate accounts under Elmi’s control.
In 2021, the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) publicly honored Elmi with an “outstanding refugee” Entrepreneurship Award. The state agency praised his business ventures and promoted his personal journey on its official website.
”I started a business to help inspire other people,” Elmi said in an archived post on the Minnesota DHS website. “No one owns businesses in my family; my entire family came here with the idea that the American dream was just getting a job and making it work, so shifting that mindset was difficult but important. Navigating those treacherous waters allowed me to provide for my family and work on my terms.”
Elmi also secured external commercial backing, participating in a startup project funded by Shark Tank investor Kevin O’Leary.
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News of the criminal filing triggered swift public criticism online. High-profile conservative commentators zeroed in on the connection between state honors and systemic financial crimes.
”Fraud is so rampant in this demographic that it’s rewarded instead of punished,” ACT for America Founder Brigitte Gabriel posted on X. “When the system celebrates the looters, you have a culture problem.”
”Deport,” Townhall columnist Dustin Grage posted on X.
”This is the Minnesota Democrat officials created,” Republican National Committee member AK Kamara posted on X. “Endless depravity and taxpayer-funded fraud.”
”You literally cannot make this up,” conservative pundit Eric Daugherty posted on X. “Get these people out of my country.”
”The same agency that awarded Elmi is the SAME agency that gives out Medicaid payments,” conservative commentator Benny Johnson posted on X. “You can’t make this up.”
The criminal charges land amid broader scrutiny of Minnesota state government oversight under Gov. Tim Walz. State and federal prosecutors are currently investigating multi-department oversight failures involving local community programs, with estimated losses reaching up to $9 billion. The ongoing fallout previously led Walz to drop his re-election bid.
A DHS spokesperson confirmed the agency discontinued the Outstanding Refugee Awards in 2024, emphasizing that winners received plaques and certificates rather than cash.
”Salman Elmi’s alleged actions are disturbing and do not reflect the goal of the Outstanding Refugee Awards,” the spokesperson said. “They also do not represent Minnesota’s refugee community. We are surrounded by neighbors, coworkers, employees and friends with powerful stories of resilience in the face of difficult circumstances, who are showing leadership in small as well as large ways to improve their communities. The Outstanding Refugee Awards were a way to recognize some of the individuals who make Minnesota better for all of us.”
”The value came from the opportunity to recognize the courage, resilience and entrepreneurship of refugees and their children, and to recognize their contributions to the state,” the spokesperson added. “Refugees and immigrants offer skills to a needed workforce, provide entrepreneurial innovation and expand worldwide networks – all of which benefit Minnesota.”
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