Audit warns of "heightened risk" of fraud in $36M of Minneapolis violence-prevention contracts

A new audit is sounding the alarm over how the city of Minneapolis has managed tens of millions of dollars in violence-prevention contracts handed out in the years since the death of George Floyd.

The Neighborhood Safety Contract Management Audit Report, which reviews city spending from 2020 through 2025, found the city is "not providing sufficient contract oversight or managing contracts effectively" in handling the more than $36 million spent since 2023 across five major violence-prevention programs.

More than 100 contracts were awarded to community groups as alternatives to policing beginning in 2020. According to the Minnesota Star Tribune's reporting on the audit, the lax oversight of those contracts left them susceptible to fraud and favoritism.

The report warns that Minneapolis's weak contract controls created a heightened risk of fraud and improper payments. Auditors found contractors often submitted invoices with limited supporting documentation, while the city sometimes continued making payments despite missing records or unresolved concerns.

The city also lacked a standardized process for conducting and documenting site visits to verify that contracted services were actually being performed, auditors found. The report additionally calls for better invoice reviews, preserved contract records, documented contractor communications, and clearer procedures for escalating concerns.

Bill Glahn, a policy fellow with the Center of the American Experiment, told Fox News Digital the findings match his own reporting. In a 2023 analysis, Glahn noted the city had committed up to $7.5 million to its violence-interrupter initiative for 2022–23, with another $13 million budgeted for 2024–28 — while the city had not published substantive evidence showing the program was reducing violent crime.

Glahn also found that several participating organizations had annual revenues or staffing levels far below the size of the grants they received.

"The city seems primarily interested in shoveling money out the door to 'address' urgent problems," Glahn said. "Little if any care is given to ensuring that the grant recipients are capable of or have a track record of doing the work, are actually doing the work contracted for, or whether that work is resulting in net benefit for city residents and taxpayers."

The scrutiny comes as one program participant faces criminal charges. We Push for Peace, a Minneapolis crime-prevention organization that received approximately $2 million from the city between 2021 and 2025, was charged with charity fraud. State officials allege the group's former executive director, Trahern Pollard, diverted charitable assets for personal expenses, including luxury vehicles, trips to Las Vegas, and child support payments.

The program's future is now a point of contention at City Hall. Mayor Jacob Frey, who previously advocated expanding the violence-interrupter initiative, has proposed cutting its budget by $2.6 million in fiscal 2027. Frey has called the program "noble" but said it has "not demonstrated the level of results taxpayers deserve." The city has budgeted $5.5 million for the program in 2026.

A Minneapolis city spokesperson told Fox News Digital the city appreciates the auditor's work, noting the auditor expanded the report's scope to be more thorough. "The Neighborhood Safety Department has a lot to be proud of. Our work is meaningful, and every day we're working to make our City safer through innovative safety services, like violence prevention and human trafficking prevention, among others," the spokesperson said. "We've taken several steps since the audit report to improve our processes and contract oversight."

It is important to note what the audit did and did not find: it did not identify a specific instance of fraud. It warned that weak oversight created a heightened risk of fraud and improper payments.

The findings land amid continued national attention on fraud in Minnesota programs, including the Feeding Our Future scandal and fraudulent Medicaid billing schemes.

— National Correspondent Network. Reporting based on the New York Post, Fox News Digital, and the Minnesota Star Tribune's coverage of the audit.