Maine nonprofit with Somali ties reportedly sees state funding shut off after fraud claims

A Maine health services company recently accused by a whistleblower of bilking taxpayers out of millions in Medicaid funds saw its spigot shut off this week as the state Department of Health moved to halt payments from MaineCare.

Gateway Community Services is a Portland company run by a Somali-born man who ran for president – the U.S. equivalent of governor – of Jubaland, Somalia, for what would have been a four-year term beginning in 2024, according to his campaign website.

Ali’s campaign manifesto includes a point saying he would create "robust security infrastructure" to counter Al-Shabab, while reports out of Minnesota claim their Somali-tied funds may have ended up in the hands of the terror group.

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Incumbent Ahmed Mohamed Islam Madobe won that contest, which also inspired both the Mogadishu government and semi-autonomous Jubaland government in Bu’ale to issue arrest warrants for each other’s leaders over illegitimacy claims, according to Reuters.

Ali originally came to the U.S. as a refugee in 2009, became a U.S. citizen, and started several ventures, according to the Maine Wire.

MaineCare sent Gateway a notice of violation last week, according to the Bangor Daily News, which reported that payments would be suspended while the state investigated "credible allegations of fraud."

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The paper reported the state will seek more than $1 million in payments made in 2021 and 2022, with Maine Department of Health spokesperson Lindsay Hammes saying the agency will "continue to hold providers to the highest standards and ensure accountability in the use of public funds."

MaineCare paid Gateway $28.8 million between 2019 and 2024, according to records obtained by the Bangor Daily News through a public records request.

The firm also received almost $700,000 in COVID-era Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds to purportedly save 127 jobs, according to the Maine Wire.

Fox News Digital had attempted to reach Ali and Gateway earlier this month when a whistleblower came forward to NewsNation alleging he had witnessed fraud firsthand while working there.

The whistleblower, Chris Bernardini, told NewsNation that while working at the firm, he "couldn’t fathom" the depths of alleged fraud he witnessed.

"I thought we were helping people," he said, adding that he received calls complaining that Gateway staff never showed up for clients, and claimed an electronic monitoring system tracking movements of field staff wrongly depicted them traveling to low-income clients, according to the outlet.

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An attorney for Gateway, Pawel Bincyzk, told the Bangor paper that the firm did receive notices from the state but that the company "stands by its previous statements on this issue and will continue to cooperate with the state as it has in the past."

The notification from Augusta came shortly after Congress weighed in on the matter in a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent regarding concerns over Minnesota’s burgeoning Somali-linked fraud scandal.

Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., also listed Gateway in the letter, along with several people purportedly connected to the firm, including Ali and state Rep. Deqa Dhalac, D-Portland.

A message left at the phone number for Gateway’s main office was not returned, and another extension was disconnected.

Fox News Digital reached out to Maine Democratic Attorney General Aaron Frey about the state’s actions. A spokesperson declined comment on the investigation.