The White House sharply escalated its rhetoric Wednesday over sweeping fraud allegations tied to Minnesota state programs, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt warning that arrests are imminent and making clear the Trump administration intends to hold Gov. Tim Walz politically accountable.

“People will be in handcuffs,” Leavitt said during an appearance on Fox & Friends, adding that President Donald Trump “is not going to let Governor Walz off the hook” for alleged fraud that unfolded under his administration.

Leavitt said the administration has surged federal resources into Minnesota, describing a coordinated, multi-agency investigation now underway.

“This is a top priority for the administration,” she said, noting that the Department of Justice is executing search warrants and subpoenas while the Department of Homeland Security conducts on-the-ground investigations.

As part of that effort, Immigration and Customs Enforcement has launched door-to-door operations at sites linked to alleged fraud, an initiative discussed this week by ICE Director Todd Lyons. Leavitt said those operations are occurring alongside continued deportations in Minnesota communities.

“We’re also not afraid to use denaturalization,” Leavitt added, calling it a tool available to the president and the secretary of state and one the administration has used in the past.

According to Leavitt, multiple other federal departments are now involved. The Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Agriculture, and Department of Labor are each conducting parallel reviews. One agency has cut off childcare funding to Minnesota pending the outcome of the investigation, another is examining the state’s unemployment insurance program, and a third has demanded that Minnesota turn over the names of every SNAP recipient.

“Our entire administration is working around the clock to get to the bottom of it,” Leavitt said.

Walz, who has faced mounting scrutiny as details of the alleged fraud have emerged, has acknowledged the seriousness of the situation. He has said the problem occurred “on my watch” and that he is “accountable” for addressing it, even as his administration has questioned some federal estimates about the scope of the fraud.

According to FOX 9 in St. Paul, Walz has ordered a third-party audit of Medicaid billing through Minnesota’s Department of Human Services and paused payments for certain services while the audit is conducted.

“We cannot effectively deliver programs and services if they don’t have the backing of the public’s trust,” Walz said in a statement to the outlet. “In order to restore that trust, we are pumping the brakes on 14 programs that were created to help the most disadvantaged among us, yet have become the target of criminal activity.”

He added that those found abusing public programs would face consequences. “If you attempt to defraud our public programs and steal taxpayer dollars out from under the people who need them most — you will be stopped, and you will be held accountable,” Walz said.