Overview
- Federal agents arrested a dozen people in the San Diego area after a multiagency sweep that executed search warrants at homes described as at‑home daycare sites.
- The arrests were carried out on Thursday, Sept. 10, and the Justice Department unsealed wire fraud and related charges on Tuesday, Sept. 15.
- Prosecutors say the defendants obtained state childcare licenses, registered with local administrators to receive subsidies, and submitted falsified monthly attendance records to collect payments for children who were not present.
- Investigators cite surveillance footage, bank deposit records and border entries showing some operators were outside the United States when they filed claims, and several defendants reportedly received more than $1 million each in payments.
- The case is being presented as part of a broader Fraud Task Force and IRS Criminal Investigation campaign to deter benefit fraud and protect funding for low‑income families, with defendants facing wire fraud and in some cases money‑laundering counts that carry lengthy prison terms and fines.