During Tuesday’s State of the Union address, President Donald Trump accused members of Maine’s Somali community of committing fraud on a level that’s “even worse” than what’s being alleged in Minnesota.
Trump targeted Maine, in addition to California and Massachusetts, about 50 minutes into his nearly two-hour speech in which he announced that Vice President JD Vance would spearhead the administration’s “war on fraud.”
“There has been no more stunning example than Minnesota, where members of the Somali community have pillaged an estimated $19 billion dollars from the American taxpayer,” Trump said, eliciting howls of protest from some Democrats. “The number is actually much higher than that, and California,…
This type of fraud targets the supply chain and accounts payable departments of businesses.
- Invoice Manipulation: Criminals intercept a legitimate invoice between a supplier and a client and change the banking details to their own. The client pays the bill thinking they are paying their trusted vendor.
- Kickbacks and Bribery: A vendor secretly pays an employee of the purchasing company to ensure their bid is successful or to overlook inflated pricing.