Happening Now: NTV KENYA LIVE | Senate Proceedings
Dr Abdullahi Ali.
A University of Nairobi alumnus who was born in Somalia, grew up in the Dadaab Refugee Camp and later got United States citizenship is facing a House of Representatives investigation over alleged fraud.
Dr Abdullahi Ali’s data is being scrutinised by a committee in America’s lower house as part of a graft probe. He is the founder and CEO of Gateway Community Services, a healthcare firm based in the US state of Maine that was last month suspended from receiving government funds pending investigations. In 2024, Dr Ali unsuccessfully ran for presidency in Somalia’s state of Jubaland. During his campaign, he spoke about his aspirations in interviews with various Kenyan media houses.
At the same time, numerous cash transfer companies based in the US, some that facilitate remittances to Kenya, are facing a US lawmakers’ investigation relating to finances they might have helped move as fraudulent activities went on in Minnesota and elsewhere.
Amaana Money Transfer, Amal Money Wire, Dahab-Shil Inc, and Iftin Trading are among the US-registered firms whose transactions done between 2018 and 2025 are under review.
Both the cash transfer companies and Dr Ali were named in a letter issued on December 22, 2025, by Mr James Comer, the House chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. It was addressed to Mr Scott Bessent, the secretary of the US Department of the Treasury, seeking various records about them.
The companies were in a “list of money service businesses of interest” in Mr Comer’s letter.
The letter, available on the House website, asked the Treasury department to produce the suspicious activity reports filed by the companies starting from January 1, 2018, “to present”. In the US, a suspicious activity report (SAR) is a document that a financial institution must file with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network if it suspects money laundering or fraud. Reuters explains that such reports “are tools to help monitor any activity within finance-related industries that is deemed out of the ordinary, a precursor of illegal activity, or might threaten public safety”. The suspicious activity reports, Reuters further explains, are treated with confidentiality; that at no time is a person under investigation told about them being submitted.
Mr Comer also asked the Treasury to make reports “in reference to or relating to funds that are known or suspected to have been sent to foreign jurisdictions”.
The letter was in line with an investigation by US lawmakers into the theft and repatriation of American taxpayers’ millions siphoned from government relief programmes. The US government lost about $300 million (Sh39 billion) in a child nutrition programme that went rogue and up to $200 million (Sh26 billion) autism healthcare funding that also went haywire.
Mr Comer told Mr Bessent: “As Secretary, you are authorised to produce suspicious activity reports to the committee in pursuit of its investigation. Specifically, it is essential that Treasury produce to the committee certain suspicious activity reports to assist the committee’s investigation of waste and fraud in Minnesota, especially pertaining to social service programmes broadly and allegations of financial links to designated terrorist organisations. This oversight will inform legislative solutions to improve federal efforts to prevent fraud and abuse of assistance programs and ensure the generosity of American citizens is not taken advantage of by opportunistic criminals.”
The money transfer companies, he wrote, are a topic of interest after “extensive money laundering and fraud within government programmes” was uncovered by the US Attorney for the District of Minnesota. Mr Comer belongs to President Donald Trump’s Republican Party, which has hit hard on Somali immigrants and used the fraud exposé to execute immigration crackdowns and sanctions.
The other cash firms in Mr Comer’s letter were Rasmi Pay, Ramad Pay, Hodan Global Money Services, and Beeso Corp. It is worth noting that none of the companies had been linked with any wrongdoing.
Back to Dr Ali. When he attempted to wrest the Jubaland presidency from Ahmed Mohamed Islam, alias Madobe in 2024, he created a website where he shared his story, detailing his movement from Somalia to Kenya and finally the US.
“Dr Ali’s academic journey is a testament to his dedication to lifelong learning and excellence. Born in Somalia and raised in the Kenyan refugee camp of Dadaab, he resettled in Maine as a refugee,” said the website.
“While in Kenya, Dr Ali earned an associate’s degree in community development and completed coursework towards a degree in sociology and public administration at the University of Nairobi. In the United States, he pursued higher education with determination, obtaining a bachelor’s degree in social science with a minor in economics from the University of Southern Maine,” it added.
“He is the founder and chief executive officer of Gateway Community Services, where he has made significant strides in supporting and uplifting diverse communities. As the Executive Director of the not-for-profit wing of Gateway, Dr Ali has further expanded his outreach, ensuring that critical services and support reach those in need,” the website further said.
In Mr Comer’s letter, the US Treasury was asked to provide suspicious activity reports “and accompanying material” with relation to Gateway Community Services. He further listed the individuals under Gateway whose reports the House team wanted. Dr Ali was the first on the list. Others included John Ochira, Marcelle Medford, Yahye Hussein, Caroline Sample, Yussuf Abdi, John Bauer, and Ragini Malhotra.
Also, it is worth noting that so far, the House has not documented any wrongdoing on the part of Dr Ali or Gateway. However, the US government paused disbursements to Gateway in December. In a December 23 report, The Maine Public quoted a government official commenting on the halting.
“A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services said the move follows a recently completed and previously unreported audit in which the Portland-based provider was found to have overbilled MaineCare by more than $1 million [Sh129 million].
The spokesperson also said that suspending MaineCare payments is imposed when there is suspected fraud, a determination that also triggers a referral to the Office of the Attorney General for an investigation.”
MaineCare is the name of the Medicaid programme in Maine. Through it, the government subsidises healthcare for needy Americans. In December, American news outlets were awash with an account given by a whistleblower who used to work at Gateway and who claimed to know how public funds were fraudulently obtained.
Follow our WhatsApp channel for breaking news updates and more stories like this.
