Trump awards Utahn Nick Shirley $10K check under new anti-fraud reward program

SALT LAKE CITY — President Donald Trump on Tuesday cut a $10,000 check to Utahn Nick Shirley for his help uncovering fraud in Minnesota childcare centers under a new fraud reward program.

The new Fraud Whistleblower Incentive Program, announced in a White House press event on Tuesday, will allow whistleblowers in some cases to receive 1% of the funds recouped when fraud is proved in court. The White House said the money would be awarded if a case leads to a successful conviction for fraud or other federal enforcement action.

The Department of Justice will oversee the program, with Vice President JD Vance also overseeing the administration's larger fraud efforts. The fund will start off with $25 million.

"What you've done, as a young guy, a very young guy, he got it very early, and it's too bad that you had to ruin your youth to find that such bad people exist," Trump said in introducing Shirley in the Oval Office.

Vance later detailed the new program, noting that "if you find the money and you help us recover it, you benefit from the program."

Shirley, 24, speaking from the Oval Office, said he was concerned about the "well-being of our tax dollars" and that's why he went out to investigate fraud in Minnesota.

"So I hope by today, millions of people are empowered inside of the United States to go out and actually make a change inside your community and you'll actually be rewarded for saving America money," Shirley said.

Shirley's videos alleging fraud in Minneapolis went viral. His 42-minute video documenting the hunt garnered tens of millions of views across several platforms.

He visited various daycare, healthcare and autism centers across Minnesota and showed locations that appeared empty despite receiving funding.

The videos sparked national political attention and led to federal investigations, with Shirley, a Farmington native, testifying before the House Judiciary Committee. There were also official reviews into Minnesota's childcare and healthcare funding processes.

The investigations led to federal charges against certain daycare owners involved in the fraudulent activity. The reaction to Shirley's video was mixed, with some criticizing it as sensationalism, but many others praising him for kickstarting a larger national conversation about looking for fraud in various communities and programs, including the Trump administration's push to crackdown on Medicaid fraud.

He was given the Citizen Journalist of the Year award last November at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

Shirley and Trump both noted that California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that goes into effect next October dubbed the "Stop Nick Shirley Act." The bill prohibits individuals and businesses from knowingly publishing or distributing the personal information of people involved in immigration support services.

Shirley said it's a "direct violation of the First Amendment" and California is attacking him because he is now focused on illegal immigration being funded by taxpayer dollars.

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