Asha Farhan Hassan, 28, has been charged with wire fraud in connection to a $14 million scheme involving the Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention (EIDBI) Autism Program in Minnesota. She also faces charges related to her participation in the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme, from which she allegedly received $465,000.
“Today’s charges mark the first in the ongoing investigation into fraud in the EIDBI Autism Program,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. “To be clear, this is not an isolated scheme. From Feeding Our Future to Housing Stabilization Services and now Autism Services, these massive fraud schemes form a web that has stolen billions of dollars in taxpayer money. Each case we bring exposes another strand of this network. The challenge is immense, but our work continues.”
According to court documents, Hassan and others devised a plan to defraud the EIDBI program—a state-funded healthcare initiative for people under 21 with autism spectrum disorder—by submitting fraudulent Medicaid claims through Smart Therapy LLC, a company Hassan registered as sole owner in November 2019. Other individuals reportedly had ownership stakes but were not listed due to prior exclusions by state authorities.
Smart Therapy employed unqualified individuals as behavioral technicians and recruited children from the Somali community for autism services, sometimes arranging for necessary diagnoses and treatment plans regardless of medical need. Parents were offered monthly cash kickbacks ranging from $300 to $1,500 per child based on service authorization amounts. These payments were funded through inflated or falsified Medicaid claims.
Hassan and her partners submitted millions of dollars in claims for services that were not provided or exaggerated actual care given. Claims often included forged provider signatures or approvals from supervising professionals who did not actually participate or were out of the country at the time.
Most children enrolled at Smart Therapy were transported daily by drivers who also billed transportation services to DHS; some drivers appeared on Smart Therapy’s payroll as well.
The alleged scheme resulted in more than $14 million being paid out by Minnesota Department of Human Services and UCare. Proceeds from these activities were split among Hassan and her associates, with significant funds sent abroad—including real estate purchases in Kenya.
In addition to the autism program fraud, Hassan used Smart Therapy’s enrollment under Feeding Our Future’s sponsorship to claim reimbursement from federal child nutrition programs meant for feeding children. Between 2020 and 2021, she claimed nearly 200,000 meals served at Smart Therapy sites—often submitting identical meal counts each day—and was reimbursed approximately $465,000.
“Abusing publicly funded health care programs for personal profit is an act of duplicity, greed, and a betrayal of the most vulnerable in our community,” said Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr., FBI Minneapolis. “The alleged fraud by Hassan resulted in the theft of millions of dollars intended to serve and support children in need. The FBI and our partners will not stop pursuing those who unscrupulously exploit government programs. We will secure justice for the taxpayers of Minnesota.”
The case is being investigated by multiple federal agencies including the FBI; Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General; Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; and United States Postal Inspection Service.
Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson leads prosecution alongside Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rebecca E. Kline, Harry M. Jacobs, and Daniel W. Bobier.
It should be noted that an information is merely an allegation; Hassan is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
