YouTuber and independent journalist Nick Shirley, who helped blow the lid off what he describes as a massive Somali daycare fraud scheme, said Wednesday that he and his family are now receiving death threats in the wake of his viral reporting. According to Shirley, the threats aren’t confined to the internet—they’ve also occurred in person.
Disturbingly, some of the messages reportedly threaten to “Kirk” him—a reference to conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, invoking violent rhetoric meant to intimidate and silence. That kind of language isn’t just grotesque; it’s a flashing red warning light about how quickly political disagreement on the Left curdles into menace when narratives collapse.
“They are saying, like, ‘Kirked, you’re going to be Kirked. You’re going to be Kirked,’” Shirley told podcast host Patrick Bet-David. “That’s what they’re saying, like, you’re next. You’ll be the next [Charlie] Kirk.”
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“And it’s just like, are you kidding me? It’s not even like, I hate what’s happening right now. I honestly feel bad for my family, because it’s like, yeah, we didn’t do anything wrong, and yet you guys are coming after me like I’m some sort of villain,” he added.
? JUST IN: Leftists are now THREATENING Nick Shirley that he will be the next "Kirk" because he exposed fraud
"They say, you'll be Kirked." ?
"I feel bad for my family. We didn't do anything wrong."
PROTECT NICK. The left is VERY violent.??pic.twitter.com/qAeQGzbTqa
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 31, 2025
He later said the threats escalated to the point that even his little sister was receiving menacing phone calls—a line no sane person should ever cross. Shirley openly questioned why his family would be dragged into this at all, simply because he reported on alleged fraud.
Shirley made his motives crystal clear during the interview. He said his work exposing the Somali daycare fraud had nothing to do with politics and everything to do with financial accountability
“I just showed you guys that fraud was happening,” he said.
“I didn’t make this a right-or-left issue,” he added.
In the video, Nick Shirley visited multiple daycare centers that have been pulling in millions in state funding. Despite showing up during normal business hours, the locations were largely empty. In some cases, staff were openly hostile; in others, they were more than happy to immediately enroll Shirley’s fictitious child—without confirming the child even existed. Shirley later argued that these “daycares” functioned as little more than fronts, enabling owners and operators to cash in on taxpayer dollars intended to support legitimate childcare services.
Minnesota officials, unsurprisingly, have rushed to push back.
Tikki Brown, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families, claimed that government inspections have uncovered no evidence of fraud—a reassurance that rings hollow given what independent journalists captured on camera and the mounting questions that state oversight still hasn’t answered.
“We are aware of a video that’s being circulated that has gained local and national attention about childcare centers in Minnesota,” Brown said at a press conference on Monday. “While we have questions about some of the methods that were used in the video, we do take the concerns that the video raises about fraud very seriously.”
Gov. Tim Walz has inevitably been pulled into the mess as well—particularly given his administration’s long history of downplaying, excusing, or outright ignoring fraud. The irony is rich: Walz once bragged about Minnesota’s childcare industry, even holding it up as a national model during the 2024 vice presidential debate against JD Vance.
That boast hasn’t aged well.
While Minnesota’s Democratic state officials continue to deny there’s anything to see here, the Trump administration isn’t buying it. Agents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have begun going door to door at locations accused of fraud, treating the allegations with the seriousness they warrant.
Even more telling, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has halted all childcare payments to the state, effectively pulling the emergency brake on Minnesota’s cash pipeline. And Trump’s Justice Department is also involved.
So while Walz’s administration insists everything is fine, the federal government’s actions tell a very different story—one that suggests the fraud concerns are credible, widespread, and serious enough to justify immediate intervention.
