Minnesota $250M fraud sparks Treasury probe into possible al-Shabab links
Story by Shay Johnson • 1h
Warning signs appeared in Minnesota's child nutrition programs well before talks of terrorism. Federal investigators uncovered what they call one of the biggest fraud cases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Criminals stole at least $250 million in taxpayer money. This cash was meant to feed kids, house vulnerable adults, and help young people with autism. Instead, it funded luxury homes, fancy cars, property abroad, and digital currencies like cryptocurrency. What started as a check for terror funding revealed schemes fueled by greed and poor government oversight.
Feeding Our Future and Huge Meal Scams
Aimee Bock started the nonprofit Feeding Our Future in 2016. The group grew fast during the pandemic when federal money for child meals increased. Prosecutors say Bock and her partners lied about serving millions of meals to poor kids. They used fake lists of kids and exaggerated numbers to get reimbursements from Minnesota's Department of Education. Court records show only a tiny part of the money went to real food. Some spots claimed to hand out 120,000 meals a day from parking lots or empty buildings.
For example, a small Minneapolis restaurant called Safari, run by Salim Said, got over $32 million. It claimed to serve thousands of meals each day, which did not match its size. On March 19, 2025, a jury found Bock and Said guilty of wire fraud and money laundering. Prosecutors called the overall Minnesota fraud "staggering" and on an "industrial scale." They noted Feeding Our Future was just one of several cases being probed.
Leaders' Greed and Wild Spending
Federal agents charged 92 people in these fraud cases. Eighty-two of them are Somali Americans. Over 50 have admitted guilt, and several others lost at trial. Text messages from the group show they wanted to get rich fast, with no political or ideological goals. One key figure, Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, got 28 years in prison. At his sentencing, Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson pointed out Farah's chances in America and said he repaid them by "robbing us blind."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/minnesota-250m-fraud-sparks-treasury-probe-into-possible-al-shabab-links/ar-AA1T9WGg?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=69511e792a0b4e44889a5306ab91c1f4&ei=47
