Nick Shirley Wears a Bulletproof Vest After Viral Minnesota Daycare Report: ‘Bad Group of People to Piss Off — the Somalian Population’

Independent journalist Nick Shirley said he has to wear a bulletproof vest because he is worried about his safety following his viral report on Somali-run daycares in Minnesota.

Shirley shared his concerns during an appearance on The Ice Coffee Hour podcast on Saturday.

“I pissed off a pretty bad group of people to piss off — the Somalian population,” Shirley said. “Because if you piss of one Somali, you’re pissing off the whole entire community.”

The young reporter said he takes other precautions as well, including not taking Ubers anymore. Shirley said he also has to take security guards when he streams at protests because “radicalized” attendees have branded him a “MAGA influencer.”

“I’m walking into the dens of the lions, bro,” Shirley said about going to protests. “They like just come after me. They’ll literally come and swarm me.”

Shirley’s viral daycare report has been viewed more than 137 million views on X since it was posted on December 26. He visited multiple Minneapolis daycare centers and found them to be mostly vacant or inactive — with some staff members shooing him away for asking if they were enrolling kids.

“Go away. You’re not welcome here. Shame on you,” one woman told Shirley.

His report was reposted by Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk, among others. The report called into question the legitimacy of several Somali-run operations that had received millions in taxpayer funding.

One notable example: Shirley reported one of the Minneapolis daycares in question called “Quality Learning Center” received $1.9 million in funding in 2025 — but was empty when he arrived. The sign in front of the building also misspelled its name as “Quality Learing Center”; Shirley wore a sweatshirt with the misspelled name while on the Ice Coffee Hour podcast.

Shirley’s report came a week after federal prosecutors said a $9 billion “industrial-scale” fraud scheme had been orchestrated in Minnesota. The New York Post reported the scheme was pulled off by “dozens of people — the vast majority from Minnesota’s Somali community.” More than 90 people have been charged.

The charges and Shirley’s report have led to heavy criticism of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D).

At the same time, several mainstream outlets have called into question the accuracy of Shirley’s report.

CNN anchor Abby Phillip questioned Shirley’s investigation last week, arguing that the “Somali community is under attack” and “being threatened” over charges of widespread fraud.

“Honestly, you knock on the door of a daycare center and you’re like, ‘Let me in, let me in.’ What do you expect people to do?” Phillip asked.

She continued, “You know, in some of those cases, there were children in there. What do you want people to do in that situation? Open the door and say, ‘Come on in.’ When they know that the Somali community is under attack, is being threatened every single day. What is going on here?”

Before last week, CNN and MS NOW had ignored reporting on the fraud scheme since prosecutors made their “industrial-scale” claims on December 18.

Shirley added earlier in the podcast he had been “jumped” while reporting in mid-2025, so he is on high-alert when it comes to his safety.

Watch above.