MINNEAPOLIMEDIA NEWS UPDATE | Anoka County Attorney Orders Review of Andrea Sampson’s Past Casework

ANOKA, MN (August 22, 2026) The Anoka County Attorney’s Office is conducting an internal review to determine whether alleged criminal conduct involving former assistant county attorney Andrea Leigh Sampson affected any cases she handled during her employment.

Anoka County Attorney Brad Johnson announced the review Friday amid continuing investigations into an alleged Twin Cities commercial-sex operation and a related Medicaid-fraud case involving businesses and properties connected to Sampson.

The office said investigators have not disclosed evidence connecting Sampson’s official county duties to the conduct alleged in the criminal cases.

“When I became the Anoka County Attorney in 2023, I could never have imagined inheriting a public attorney in the Office who would face such serious allegations of criminal activity,” Johnson said.

“The alleged conduct is offensive to both the legal profession and the mission of our Office,” he added. “It is our solemn duty to continue to determine whether there is credible evidence that Ms. Sampson’s conduct adversely affected any case or cases handled by our Office.”

The office has also referred the matter involving Sampson’s law license to the Minnesota Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility.

Review focuses on family-law and civil cases

Sampson worked for the Anoka County Attorney’s Office from 2017 until March 2026. At the time state investigators contacted county leadership, she was assigned to the office’s Family Law and Civil divisions.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension notified senior county officials of its investigation Feb. 25. The county immediately placed Sampson on administrative leave, terminated her access to office systems and directed employees to cooperate with investigators.

Her county employment ended March 9.

Because Sampson worked primarily on family-law and civil matters, the newly announced review is expected to focus on cases she handled in those divisions. The county has not identified any specific proceeding as compromised and has not disclosed how many active or closed cases are being examined.

The review does not mean that misconduct occurred in any county case. It is intended to determine whether Sampson’s alleged activities outside the office affected her professional responsibilities, representations to courts or work performed for Anoka County.

Four defendants face 104 prostitution-related counts

Sampson, 35, of Fridley, is one of four people charged in Hennepin County following a multiyear BCA investigation.

Sampson, Frank Devone Reeves, Viktoriya Sergeyevna Komonash and Katherine Michelle Thomes each face 13 counts of promoting the prostitution of an individual and 13 counts of receiving profits from prostitution. The four defendants therefore face 104 combined felony counts.

Prosecutors allege that the organization recruited and exploited women through an online commercial-sex advertising operation. Investigators identified at least 13 alleged victims, although Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said authorities believe additional victims may exist.

According to the criminal complaints:

• Reeves and Komonash allegedly recruited women, arranged advertisements, established rates and collected money.
• Komonash allegedly photographed women, managed appointments and supervised daily activity.
• Thomes allegedly owned and operated the Minnesota Erotica Personals website used to advertise commercial-sex services.
• Sampson allegedly secured properties where photographs and commercial-sex transactions occurred and created or maintained companies used to conceal or funnel proceeds.

The allegations have not been proven in court. All four defendants are presumed innocent unless and until convicted.

A judge set Sampson’s bail at $1 million without conditions or $300,000 with conditions, according to court reporting from her initial appearance.

Separate Medicaid case involves connected businesses

The prostitution prosecution must be distinguished from a separate Medicaid-fraud case filed by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.

Salman Ahmed Elmi is the defendant formally charged in that case. He faces five felony counts of aiding and abetting theft by false representation and three counts of aiding and abetting theft by swindle.

The Attorney General’s complaint alleges that Elmi helped REVA Health and affiliated entities submit false claims, use inadequately qualified providers and offer kickbacks for access to Medicaid recipients’ personal information.

The complaint describes Sampson, Reeves and Komonash as owners, managers or associates of businesses examined during the fraud investigation, but the identified Medicaid-fraud charges were filed against Elmi. Sampson’s 26 pending charges concern promoting prostitution and receiving prostitution proceeds.

The connected providers included REVA Health, REVA Health Autism Center, Helpful Housing and Homefelt Assisted Living. Together, those businesses submitted approximately $4.65 million in Medicaid claims between May 2023 and February 2026, according to charging documents.

That figure represents the companies’ total claims and should not be interpreted as a judicial finding that every claim was fraudulent. Investigators have publicly identified approximately $2.5 million in billing as potentially fraudulent, including about $1.2 million connected to assisted-living operations.

Prosecutors allege some women associated with the commercial-sex operation were recruited as purported employees or clients of the Medicaid providers. The complaint also alleges that some properties previously used for commercial-sex activity were later converted into assisted-living facilities.

State closes two connected assisted-living facilities

The Minnesota Department of Health has revoked the assisted-living licenses of two Homefelt facilities connected to the investigation.

State regulators issued immediate temporary-suspension and license-revocation orders after determining that conditions presented an imminent risk of harm to residents. The enforcement process allows state agencies to coordinate the relocation of affected residents.

The regulatory orders are separate from the criminal prosecutions and do not constitute criminal convictions.

The closures have added to broader scrutiny of Minnesota’s assisted-living licensing system, particularly the state’s oversight of smaller facilities receiving publicly funded healthcare payments.

What happens next

The BCA investigation, Hennepin County prosecution, Attorney General’s Medicaid-fraud case and Anoka County’s internal review are proceeding independently.

Anoka County officials said they will continue cooperating with outside investigators. The county has not announced a completion date for its internal review or said when its findings may be released.

The criminal case involving Sampson, Reeves, Komonash and Thomes is filed in Hennepin County District Court. Sampson’s case number is 27-CR-26-20948.

Anyone with information about the alleged commercial-sex operation should contact the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension or the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office.

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