In 2022, Somali refugee Abdullahi Ali moved out of a mobile home on the outskirts of Maine’s most populous city and into a 3,312 square foot luxury dwelling in the state’s second-wealthiest town. There was one problem: he bought the home the same year he was accused of overbilling the Maine Department of Health and Human Services to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Welfare fraud in Somali communities has dominated national headlines for months following a flood of alleged discrepancies in child care and autism assistance programs within Minnesota’s Somali community. Since then, lawmakers have initiated investigations into the issue and the White House has assembled a dedicated anti-fraud task force.
Against this backdrop, trouble started for Ali. At the tail end of 2025, a whistleblower working for Ali went public with allegations that the health services company he runs had defrauded Maine’s Medicaid program out of millions of dollars. The whistleblower, who handled billing for Ali’s business, claimed that it had filed false records in order to charge taxpayers for services that weren’t actually being provided.
State authorities took these claims seriously. Just a few weeks after the whistleblower went public, Maine DHHS announced that it would cut off funding to Gateway Community Services, Ali’s company, as it reviews “credible allegations of fraud.” While Ali hasn’t been formally charged with any crimes, the state is reportedly trying to recover north of $1 million from his company.
Alleged fraud occurred year of the home purchase
A considerable proportion of this alleged fraud occurred during 2022. A spokesperson for Maine DHHS confirmed to local media that Gateway Community Services was overpaid $1,068,598 by the state from March 2021 through December 2022.
While his company was allegedly flush with cash it did not rightfully earn, Ali made his big move.
Property records indicate that Ali agreed to purchase an $875,000 home in Falmouth, Maine, where the average household income is $224,466, on December 15, 2022. He provided a $175,000 down payment and signed a $700,000 thirty-year mortgage, according to documents reviewed by the Washington Examiner.
Just a few days after the state of Maine announced an investigation into Gateway Community Services, Ali listed his home for sale with an asking price of $1 million.
Ali’s property listing suggests the home he bought while allegedly engaged in fraud is relatively luxurious.
The “stunning 4-bedroom, 2.5-bath colonial” borders a nature preserve and is “ideally located just 20 minutes from some of Maine’s finest restaurants, beaches, and shopping,” thus delivering the “perfect balance of luxury, lifestyle, and location,” according to the property’s description on Zillow.
Ali’s current residence represents a significant step up from where he was staying before the move.
Mortgage documents reviewed by the Washington Examiner indicate that Ali’s previous residence was a nearly 60-year-old mobile home configured for rental as a duplex and sporting dated appliances. It is unclear whether Ali rented both units or if he was relegated to the 700 square feet allotted to a single unit.
While many in Maine were blindsided by the accusations of fraud against Gateway Community Services in late 2025, there were signs that something was amiss beforehand.
Gateway Community Services’ nonprofit arm, which bears the same name, receives federal grant funding and, as with any nonprofit group that spends over $750,000 in federal grant money in a fiscal year, is required to undergo an independent audit of its finances.
An audit of the nonprofit organization spanning 2022 and 2023, while generally favorable, found “material weakness” in “internal control over financial reporting.” In practical terms, this means that auditors found a reasonable possibility that Gateway Community Services would fail to prevent, detect, or correct failure to provide the services described in federal grant agreements.
Ali led the nonprofit group during this period.
Frustration in Maine’s legislature
Republicans in Maine’s legislature allege that the state’s Democratic governor has had too lax an approach to oversight during her tenure in office, something they say enables fraud.
“Why the heck is it the case that the only people who are discovering this fraud are the independent journalists who are literally just going to these places, knocking on the door of the listed address on the entity that’s receiving millions of dollars, and discovering there’s nothing there?” State Sen. Trey Stewart (R-ME) told the Washington Examiner. “Why does it take an independent journalist to do that when we have an allocated voice within state government for exactly that reason? We’re supposed to be hiring and training people, and enforcing through those people, what the laws are. And none of that is happening.”
Two state lawmakers with ties to Gateway Community Services, State Reps. Deqa Dhalac (D-ME) and Yusuf Yusuf (D-ME), have come under scrutiny amid the accusations of fraud.
Dhalac, who was previously Gateway Community Services’ assistant executive director, has been viewed with particular skepticism given her role on the legislature’s budget committee, which oversees spending. Dhalac has announced that she supports the investigation into Gateway Community Services, denied any knowledge of the alleged fraud, and announced that she will not be seeking reelection, citing racism and harassment.
Yusuf, meanwhile, previously stated on his legislative profile that he worked closely with Gateway Community Services but removed the reference after the allegations of fraud surfaced.
National Republicans have taken notice of the situation in Maine as well.
“State Democrats in Maine have proven they can’t be trusted to lead,” the spokesperson for the Republican State Leadership Committee, the official GOP campaign committee tasked with winning state-level elections, told the Washington Examiner. “After years of one-party control, millions in alleged Medicaid fraud went unchecked on [Gov.] Janet Mills and [State Auditor] Matt Dunlap’s watch, and instead of accountability, Democrats are allowing a lawmaker tied to the accused company to oversee state spending. That’s not leadership, it’s a failure that demands consequences at the ballot box.”
House oversight committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) has also launched an investigation into Gateway Community Services.
Gateway Community Services and Ali, for their parts, have denied all allegations of impropriety.
The board of the nonprofit arm, which Ali is no longer involved with, called the accusations “careless” and stated that they are “part of a coordinated national effort to target immigration communities.
HEAD OF TAXPAYER-FUNDED SOMALI CHARITY CUTTING CHECKS TO FAMILY MEMBERS
“I make no apologies for building a successful business in Maine, working hard to earn a living, earning my PhD, giving back to my Maine community, and running for office in Jubaland,” Ali wrote on X in response to reporting on Gateway. “I am proud to contribute my hard-earned $ to support my people back home. America is a nation of laws—you cannot change facts by fabricating false stories. I am proud Somali-American.”
The latter part of Ali’s statement refers to his failed run for the presidency of Jubaland, Somalia’s southernmost province. Maine Wire, an investigative outlet based in its eponymous state, reported that Ali spent money to raise a militia to support his bid, citing an interview with a Kenyan news organization.
Stewart, the Republican state senator, believes fraud will be a major problem heading into the 2026 midterm elections.
“That’s why you have such a broad supported issue to crack down on fraud, because people, average people, are not OK with it,” he told the Washington Examiner. “Even if you’re a Democrat, you’re not okay with it. I mean, it’s absurd.”
Gateway Community Services’ nonprofit and for-profit arms were both contacted for comment.