A man now charged in a more than $1 million Medicaid fraud case, in which some defendants have also been linked to a sex trafficking operation, previously received an award from the state of Minnesota.

Thirty-year-old Salman Elmi faces five counts of aiding and abetting theft by misrepresentation and three counts of aiding and abetting theft by swindle for allegedly billing over $1 million in Medicaid-funded services that were never provided or weren’t eligible for reimbursement.

RELATED: Charging documents show crossover between sex trafficking, Medicaid fraud schemes

Back in 2021, he received an “Outstanding Refugee Award” from the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), the state agency that administers Medicaid funding.

DHS, which ended the program in 2024 and has since taken down the web pages listing previous award winners, told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that recipients didn’t get any monetary or material award, just a certificate and plaque.

“Salman Elmi’s alleged actions are disturbing and do not reflect the goal of the Outstanding Refugee Awards. They also do not represent Minnesota’s refugee community,” DHS said in a statement. “We are surrounded by neighbors, coworkers, employees and friends, with powerful stories of resilience in the face of difficult circumstances, who are showing leadership in small as well as large ways to improve their communities. The Outstanding Refugee Awards were a way to recognize some of the individuals who make Minnesota better for all of us.”

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, which runs the state’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit now charging Elmi, says Elmi ran a Reva Health facility in Golden Valley from 2024 through 2026. During that time, the state says he and others:

Falsified documents to get Medicaid reimbursement,Told employees to pay illegal kickbacks in exchange for recipients’ permission to use their information for their fake claims,Used ineligible providers to offer adult rehabilitative mental health services to recipients, andFalsely claimed to have provided patients with proper supervision without actually doing so.

“Medicaid fraud steals money meant to provide healthcare to our low-income friends and neighbors,” Attorney General Keith Ellison said. “It is illegal and it makes my blood boil, which is why I’m filing these charges and why I’ve built a strong record of holding fraudsters accountable.”

Four other defendants, including a former Anoka County assistant attorney, are also facing charges related to promoting and profiting from prostitution. Elmi only faces fraud-related charges.

Prosecutors allege the co-conspirators of the sex trafficking scheme ran fraudulent Medicaid service providers on the side and promised kickbacks to sex trafficking victims who collected the information of Medicaid enrollees.

For Related Stories: Awards  Fraud  Minnesota Department of Human Services  Tracking Fraud