An accounting firm sanctioned by the state of Ohio for operating without proper certifications was responsible for verifying that two Somali nonprofit organizations were responsibly stewarding taxpayer funds, public records show.
When an entity spends $750,000 or more of federal grant money per year, it is required to submit an independent auditor’s report to ensure that public funds are being handled with care. These entities, however, are free to contract any public accountant they wish to fulfill that requirement, enabling some organizations to turn to friendly auditors to conduct oversight.
Both the Somali Education and Resource Center in Ohio and MAK Community Enrichment Services in Minnesota contracted H&H Barakad Accounting to review their books to make sure that the funds they received from the Department of Agriculture were being disbursed properly. Both the nonprofit groups and the accounting firm are run by members of the Somali community.
The accounting firm provided both nonprofit organizations with a glowing assessment within a few days of each other, finding no evidence of noncompliance or other foul play. Notably, the Somali Education and Resource Center, despite the audit report saying it paid out over $1.5 million in wages during 2023, claims on its tax forms to have paid nothing to its leaders and discloses the salaries of none of its employees.
Ohio regulators punished H&H Barakad Accounting in August 2025 for endorsing audit reports before the firm properly registered with the state in January of that year. The firm’s audits of the Somali Education and Resource Center in Ohio and MAK Community Enrichment Services occurred in September 2024, before the firm was permitted to do business in that way.
As a consequence of its legal noncompliance, the firm was forced by the state to pay a $2,000 fine and to notify its clients of the mistake.
Independent journalist Walter Curt was the first to make the connection between H&H Barakad Accounting and the duo of Somali-run nonprofit organizations. Curt pointed out that allowing possibly untrustworthy auditors to review how nonprofit groups are handling federal funds makes fraud much more difficult to detect and stop.
Some on social media have gone further, claiming that the Somali Education and Resource Center is actively committing fraud.
These individuals cite the dozens of day cares that were registered under its name on a single day during June 2024 as being particularly suspicious. While it doesn’t appear as if these day cares all opened on that day, as multiple have digital footprints dating back before the June registration date, it is unclear why the nonprofit organization has so many day cares linked to it or why they were all registered on the same day in Columbus, Ohio.
Kaah Child Care & Learning Center and Sahal Day Care Center, two day care centers registered as child organizations of Somali Education and Resource Center, are located next to each other, according to state records.
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Some of the addresses listed on registration forms are in dilapidated locations, including one right next to a bar, although most direct to relatively normal-looking childcare locations. Rising Stars Day Care Center, one business listed under the Somali Education and Resource Center, maintains a website riddled with spelling and grammatical errors — even misspelling its own name at one point — while advertising itself as an educational facility in Ohio.
The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce, which is responsible for certifying day cares in the state, told the Washington Examiner that it terminated its relationship with the Somali Education and Resource Center in June and that it has not received funds from the Department of Agriculture since.