A St. Paul man who was once recognized by Minnesota officials for entrepreneurship is now facing multiple felony charges in an alleged Medicaid fraud scheme involving more than $1 million.
Salman Ahmed Elmi, a Somali refugee who received Minnesota’s 2021 Outstanding Refugee Award for Entrepreneurship, has been charged with eight felonies tied to the operation of Reva Health. According to Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office, Elmi ran the company from 2024 through 2026 and claimed to provide adult rehabilitative mental health services.
Prosecutors allege that Reva Health submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid and used falsified records to support those claims. The attorney general’s office also says employees were instructed to pay illegal kickbacks to recipients in exchange for permission to use their personal information for Medicaid billing.
Authorities further allege that some services were provided by people who were not eligible providers. The complaint also claims those running the agency falsely documented supervision that did not actually take place.
The case has drawn additional attention because of Elmi’s earlier recognition by the state. In 2021, the Minnesota Department of Human Services honored him with an award highlighting his work as an entrepreneur.
A state webpage that has since been removed quoted Elmi describing his business ambitions and his family’s experience after coming to the United States.
“I started a business to help inspire other people,” Elmi was quoted as saying.
He also described changing his family’s expectations about work and entrepreneurship, saying his relatives had arrived in the United States believing the American dream meant finding a job and making it work.
The allegations now surrounding Reva Health paint a sharply different picture.
Court documents claim that people associated with entities connected to the alleged fraud recruited young women who were struggling with homelessness, addiction, housing problems or financial hardship. According to the complaint, apartments were obtained for some of the women using falsified pay stubs while they were allegedly involved in a sex trafficking operation.
Investigators also allege that victims’ identities were stolen and later used to bill Medicaid.
Elmi has not been charged with sex trafficking, and the Medicaid allegations against him remain accusations that must be proven in court.
Two other people connected to the broader investigation, former Anoka County prosecutor Andrea Sampson and Frank Devone Reeves, have been charged in connection with the alleged sex trafficking operation.
The criminal complaint also alleges that Elmi and Sampson regularly communicated about business matters involving entities tied to the Medicaid fraud investigation.