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Red-state auditor reports ‘explosion’ of fraud tips as he targets state employees ‘racking up’ taxpayer waste
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Nebraska’s top auditor says fraud complaints are surging as waste, fraud, and abuse dominate the national conversation, telling Fox News Digital that his own crackdown has uncovered alleged misuse of taxpayer resources inside state government.
«It’s just extraordinary the explosion of phone calls and allegations and emails and so forth that are pouring into my office,» Nebraska State Auditor Mike Foley said as the fraud crackdown have become a national news story and the Trump administration, led by Vice President JD Vance, unleashed a task force to root out fraud.
«And as the media focuses on this more and more, it just makes the phone ring all the more, which is fine. We’re happy to receive those calls and try to filter through them and find out which ones are the most legitimate ones for us to pursue. But it’s clearly on the rise.»
Foley, speaking with Fox News Digital from the State Financial Officers Foundation conference in Clearwater, Florida, is sounding the alarm specifically on what he says is an issue with taxpayer money being wasted or possibly defrauded by state workers, which he has made efforts to crack down on.
«Many of our state vehicles are now equipped with a GPS tracker,» Foley explained. «We can see precisely where these state vehicles are really going during work hours and they’re going to liquor stores. They’re going into health appointments that the employee might have. They’re on personal errands all across the state, and it’s racking up a lot of expense for the taxpayers in a very improper way.»
‘MISSISSIPPI MUSK’: STATE AUDITOR’S MOGE REPORT FINDS $400M IN GOVERNMENT WASTE
Vice President JD Vance and Medicare and Medicaid Administrator Mehmet Oz spoke about combatting fraud at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex on Feb. 25, 2026. (Oliver Contreras/AFP via Getty Images)
Foley’s office reviewed GPS data from 45 state fleet vehicles and found employees allegedly using them for «trips to retail outlets, restaurants, medical facilities, residences of relatives, commuting home without permission and other private errands,» the Nebraska Examiner reported last year.
Foley put out a press release last year documenting how he uncovered what he described as a «disturbing uptick» in alleged financial improprieties across local governments statewide, detailing eight recent investigations involving suspected misuse of public money, questionable reimbursements and possible fraud.
«I can cite so many examples of contractors that are over billing or double-billing the state, all kinds of state employee infractions of using state vehicles and state assets improperly, having contractors bill us for hours which we know they did not work, having state employees billed us for time served when we know that they were at a different place of employment, public school districts that are milking public school funds for all kinds of extravagances and so forth, but at the end of the day, the tone has to be set at the top.»
At the top, Foley’s efforts on waste, fraud, and abuse have led him to a situation that he describes as «uncomfortable,» which has put him at odds with Nebraska’s Republican Gov. Jim Pillen.
FINAL WALZ FRAUD REPORT RIPS ‘CULTURE OF TOLERANCE’ AS MINNESOTA TAXPAYERS FACE BILLIONS IN ALLEGED LOSSES
Foley has been involved in a highly publicized debate with Pillen, arguing that the governor improperly awarded a no-bid state contract worth roughly $2 million to a consultant with ties to the governor. Nebraska law generally requires public bidding for contracts over $50,000 and says the administration wrongly claimed there was an «emergency» to bypass that process.
«There was no emergency and later now they’re claiming that she brought in hundreds of millions of dollars in grant awards,» Foley said. «The truth is those grant award applications were filed by other people, other contractors before she was even on the job. So this is a very, very serious abuse and it sets the tone in the wrong way. For other people in the state government who can say the governor can do that, I can do it too. And that’s wrong.»
Pillen’s administration has denied wrongdoing, maintaining the contract was justified because of the need to quickly pursue economic development opportunities and federal funding.
«The contract was done the right way and is bringing hundreds of millions of dollars of value to Nebraska, which otherwise would have been wasted in California,» Pillen spokesperson Laura Strimple told Fox News Digital. «Auditor Foley disagrees and he is entitled to his opinion.»
Foley has referred the matter to law enforcement for further review, saying his office’s role is limited to conducting audits and highlighting potential violations.
«I’m not the most popular person in state government,» Foley jokingly told Fox News Digital, but said «we must» track expenditures in order to safeguard taxpayer funds.
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The Nebraska state capitol building in Lincoln, Nebraska (Getty Images)
«Nebraska regrettably is a high-tax state and people know that, and they’re fed up with these high taxes, and they know that money is not being spent properly in so many instances, and they are relying on me and my office to catch this kind of thing, and we’re doing a good job,» Foley said.
«There needs to be consequences when we find these kinds of abuses, and there are. Many people are losing their jobs because they’ve abused the trust of having access to a credit card or other assets of the government, or there could be even further legal complications and infractions and jail sentences even. We’ve put a number of people behind bars because of abuse and stealing of public funds.»
corruption crime, governors, republicans elections, nebraska, investigations
La justicia de El Salvadorcondenó a 91 integrantes de la estructura criminal Palma Locos Salvatruchos, grupo vinculado a la Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), por diferentes delitos. Entre los sentenciados se encuentran siete cabecillas de la organización, procesados por agrupaciones ilícitas en perjuicio de la paz pública y, en algunos casos, por tráfico ilícito en perjuicio de la salud pública.
El Tribunal Segundo Contra el Crimen Organizado de San Salvador, a cargo del juez cuarto, determinó penas de hasta 75 años de prisión para los líderes de la estructura, después de un proceso donde se escucharon pruebas sobre el funcionamiento interno y la responsabilidad de cada acusado. La resolución judicial identificó a Hugo José Sánchez Navarro, alias Delincuente, como corredor del programa Cabañas.
También fueron señalados Manuel Antonio Preza Vides (alias Desconocido de Palma), Aníbal Antonio Najarro Serrano (alias Gánster) y Alexander Antonio Murillo Cuéllar (alias Guanaco), como responsables de la clica Palma Locos Salvatruchos de la MS-13.
Otros miembros con cargos de base dentro de la estructura recibieron sentencias de 60 años de prisión; mientras que, quienes ostentaban el rango de homeboy, fueron condenados a 45 años. El tribunal estableció que alias Desconocido de Palma sumó 15 años adicionales por delitos de tráfico ilícito, alcanzando una pena total de 75 años de cárcel.
La sentencia también incluyó a 28 homeboys y nueve chequeos, con penas de 45 y 30 años respectivamente; además de tres pandilleros con rango de observación, que fueron sentenciados a 25 años. Un grupo de 44 colaboradores activos recibió condenas de 20 años, mientras que tres colaboradores adicionales obtuvieron 15 años más por delitos asociados a tráfico ilícito.
La decisión judicial responde a un esfuerzo coordinado entre las autoridades salvadoreñas para desarticular estructuras criminales responsables de delitos graves. La identificación y condena de los líderes representa un golpe significativo contra la organización Palma Locos Salvatruchos, parte de la red de la Mara Salvatrucha en el país.
En paralelo a este proceso, la justicia de El Salvador avanza en el juicio más grande de su historia reciente contra la estructura de la MS-13. El proceso involucra a 485 cabecillas de la organización, quienes enfrentan cargos similares por agrupaciones ilícitas, homicidio, extorsión y otros delitos graves. El tribunal ha escuchado durante meses los testimonios de testigos protegidos y se ha presentado evidencia documental sobre la operación de la pandilla a nivel nacional.
Estejuicio, considerado sin precedentes por su magnitud y por la cantidad de acusados, ha llegado a su etapa final. Las autoridades esperan que las sentencias resultantes sienten un precedente en la lucha contra el crimen organizado y refuercen la política de mano dura adoptada por el Estado salvadoreño.
El proceso judicial ha contado con estrictas medidas de seguridad y con la participación de fiscales especializados, quienes han solicitado la imposición de penas ejemplares para los principales responsables de la estructura. Este caso podría marcar un antes y un después en la estrategia de combate a las pandillas en Centroamérica.
La condena a los 91 miembros de la Palma Locos Salvatruchos y la inminente resolución sobre los 485 cabecillas de la MS-13 evidencian la respuesta del sistema judicial de este país ante el fenómeno de las maras, mismo que ha impactado la vida social y la seguridad en la región.
corresponsal:Desde San Salvador, El Salvador
INTERNACIONAL
Jill Biden says former president will live with stage 4 cancer ‘for the rest of his life,’ has slowed down
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Former first lady Dr. Jill Biden gave an update on former President Joe Biden’s cancer on Saturday, saying that though the 83-year-old will live with cancer for the rest of his life, he maintains a busy schedule, but has slowed down.
Biden explained during a discussion with political commentator and «The View» co-host Ana Navarro for her new book «View From the East Wing: A Memoir,» that while her husband was still president and had a team of doctors, she mentioned that he was getting up seven times a night to go to the bathroom, and she assumed that someone would follow up on that.
But she said when they left the White House in 2025 and his problem persisted, she said she told him he had to go see a urologist and in his first appointment the doctor said, «There’s something there,» and the former president was given a CAT scan.
«I never imagined it would be prostate cancer,» she admitted. «I just never imagined it.»
MEDICAL EXPERT ‘ABSOLUTELY SHOCKED’ BY TIMING OF BIDEN’S PROSTATE CANCER DIAGNOSIS
Former first lady Dr. Jill Biden gave an update on former President Joe Biden’s cancer on Saturday, saying that the 83-year-old will live with cancer for the rest of his life, he maintains a busy schedule but has slowed down. (Grant Baldwin/Getty Images)
While she said in some cases prostate cancer can be «cured, «the problem with Joe — it’s stage four, and it has metastasized to his bones. So that puts things on a whole different level. I mean, Joe will have to live with cancer for the rest of his life, which means he’s on special medicines.»
She said he also went through radiation, which involved going from where they live in Delaware to Philadelphia constantly for five weeks.
«You know, it takes a toll,» she said, adding that on Friday night her husband was in South Dakota for a Democratic Party event, on Saturday he was at a friend’s wedding, and Sunday he’ll be in Philadelphia.
BIDEN ‘A LITTLE OLDER AND A LITTLE SLOWER’ IN THE FINAL DAYS OF HIS PRESIDENCY: NEW YORK TIMES REPORT
Then-President Joe Biden and then-first lady Jill Biden at the Democratic National Convention after he dropped out of the race in 2024. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
«He keeps his schedule, but he’s slowed down,» she said. «I mean, stage four cancer is — and he’s 83 — so, I think the mix of everything and the medications that he’s taken has made life a little more difficult these days.»
BIDEN’S FIRST PUBLIC REMARKS SINCE CANCER DIAGNOSIS HONOR GOLD STAR FAMILIES
When asked how she’s been handling the situation, Biden said: «It’s hard to be a caretaker,» noting that the former president wouldn’t want her to phrase it that way, but explaining that she’s the one responsible for all the details.
«I have to make sure he gets the right medications,» she explained. «I’m the one talking to the doctors. I’m the one setting up the appointments. I’m the one to make sure that he eats well.»
Joe Biden announced his cancer diagnosis in May 2025.
Earlier this week, the former first lady told the «Today» show that her husband is «doing OK.»
«He’s out making speeches, and he’s traveling on Amtrak,» she added. «He was just at the Delaware Memorial Bridge for the veteran’s ceremony. So yeah, he’s doing a lot, but he has stage 4 cancer.»
JILL BIDEN REVEALS TO ‘THE VIEW’ IT WAS ‘HEARTBREAKING’ WHEN DEMS ABANDONED JOE AFTER 2024 DEBATE
Biden and Navarro also talked about some other issues she wrote about in her book, including when the former president made the decision to drop out of the 2024 race after his disastrous debate in June 2024.
She said he turned to her while they were at their home in Delaware and told her: «I have no choice.»
Former President Joe Biden speaking at Rev. Jesse Jackson’s funeral in March. (Earl Gibson III/Deadline via Getty Images)
BIDEN URGED TO REVEAL DISEASE HISTORY AFTER CANCER DIAGNOSIS
Biden added that it was also «hurtful» to her when she saw Democrats, many of whom had been their friends for decades, publicly calling for Biden to drop out of the race.
But she said Biden reconciled with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was believed to have been privately leading calls for him to leave the race, at the funeral for Tatiana Schlossberg, the daughter of Caroline Kennedy, in January.
The 75-year-old admitted that she still hasn’t spoken to Pelosi.
She also said she believes there has been a «double standard» in the conversations around her husband’s age and mental acuity when compared to President Donald Trump, who will turn 80 on June 14.
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For the next president after Trump leaves office, Biden said she’s looking for someone with integrity, trustworthiness, and empathy, but didn’t name any names.
«They’re the characteristics of the American people,» she said. «That’s who we are.»
joe biden, prostate cancer, cancer, politics
INTERNACIONAL
Ante medio millón de jóvenes en Madrid, el Papa León XIV les pidió «ser humanos» frente a «la violencia de la guerra y de la mentira»
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