Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's team is defending him after a viral video by an independent journalist turned up the heat about an alleged Somali aid fraud scheme.

The issue erupted further after conservative YouTuber and independent reporter Nick Shirley posted a 42-43 minute video showing visits to multiple childcare and "learning" sites in Minneapolis that appeared closed, sparsely staffed, or inactive despite allegedly receiving millions in taxpayer funds.

A spokesperson for Walz pushed back, telling Fox News the governor has worked "for years to crack down on fraud" and has sought more authority from the Legislature to take aggressive action.

The spokesperson said Walz strengthened oversight and launched investigations into "these specific facilities," noting one had already been closed.

The Walz team also highlighted steps it claims the administration has taken to tighten controls, including hiring an outside firm to audit payments to high-risk programs, shutting down the Housing Stabilization Services program, creating a new statewide program integrity director, and supporting criminal prosecutions.

But critics argue the Democrat governor is in damage-control mode because the video appears to show what many taxpayers have feared for years: Minnesota's sprawling aid bureaucracy has been vulnerable to organized fraud, with oversight failures leaving working families stuck with the bill.

In the video, Shirley and a local Minnesotan named David visit several locations they say are tied to Somali-run operations and question why they appear inactive.

One building they filmed displayed a misspelled sign reading "Quality Learing Center" — even though the facility was purportedly associated with nearly 100 children and roughly $4 million in state funds, according to Shirley’s reporting.

Shirley later told Fox News the alleged fraud was so obvious "a kindergartner could figure out there is fraud going on," adding that Americans "work too hard" to have tax dollars wasted or stolen.

The backlash quickly drew national attention.

Republicans and prominent conservatives amplified the video, and Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., has demanded answers from Walz while Tesla CEO Elon Musk accused the governor of corruption and called for prosecution.

Meanwhile, federal scrutiny is escalating.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau has surged personnel and investigative resources to Minnesota to "dismantle large-scale fraud schemes exploiting federal programs," adding investigators believe the problem may be "the tip of a very large iceberg."

Patel's comments came amid a broader Trump administration push to target fraud tied to federal social service funding, with Minnesota’s large Somali community increasingly in the spotlight.

The New York Post reported federal investigators estimate up to half of roughly $18 billion in federal grants to Minnesota since 2018 could have been stolen through fraud schemes — potentially as much as $9 billion — with 86 people charged and 59 convicted.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., has also expanded congressional scrutiny into alleged "massive fraud and money laundering" tied to Minnesota social service programs, requesting records and briefings as part of the probe.

For many conservatives, the scandal is a warning about what happens when government grows too large, too fast and accountability lags behind.

The bigger question now is whether Walz's oversight claims will satisfy taxpayers, or whether investigators will uncover a deeper network of fraud that flourished under one-party Democrat control in the state.

Reuters contributed to this report.