Feeding our Future fraud: 10 more charged
Feeding Our Future offices (FOX 9)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Charges have come down against 10 more people in the massive, multi-million dollar Feeding Our Future fraud case in Minnesota.
Dozens have already been charged in the scheme that federal officials say allowed a nonprofit to bilk $250 million from a federal child nutrition program during the pandemic.
Charged in the new indictments, that were unsealed on Monday, include:
- Hoda Ali Abdi
- Said Ereg
- Najmo Ahmed
- Ikram Yusuf Mohamed
- Suleman Yusuf Mohamed
- Aisha Hassan Hussein
- Sahra Sharif Osman
- Shakur Abdinur Abdisalam
- Fadumo Mohamed Yusuf
- Gandi Yusuf Mohamed
Hoda Ali Abdi
Abdi, the former owner of the Alif Halal grocery store in Burnsville, is accused of acting as a food vendor under Feeding Our Future. Prosecutors say she enrolled in the federal program and worked with Feeding Our Future to submit fake invoices, claiming to have provided a substantial amount of food when, in reality, authorities say "Abdi provided little or no food to certain co-conspirators in the Federal Child Nutrition Program."
In total, prosecutors say Abdi claimed she had provided about $3 million in food for children. Then submitted tens of thousands of further claims in 2021 and early 2022.
Said Ereg and Najmo Ahmed
Ereg and Ahmed, who were charged together, "obtained, misappropriated, and laundered millions of dollars in program funds" under the Federal Child Nutrition Program.
Ereg owned the Evergreen Grocery and Deli and Ahmed was a worker at the store.
Prosecutors say the store claimed to, at times, have served more than 3,000 meals, twice a day, seven days a week. But, officials say the grocer only served a fraction of those meals.
In total, the pair claimed to have served over 1.4 million meals and got $4.2 million in payments through Feeding Our Future. Prosecutors say that money went to their personal accounts, which they used to "fund their lifestyles" including purchases from Burberry, Louis Vuitton, and Canada Goose.
Ikram Yusuf Mohamed, et al
Prosecutors say Ikram Mohamed created a consultant business and used it to "receive and launder kickback payments and fraud proceeds" as part of the Feeding Our Future scheme.
Most of the remaining defendants were family members of Mohamed, including Shakur Abdinur Abdisalam, her husband, Aisha Hassan Hussein, her sister, Fadumo Mohamed Yusuf, her mother, Suleman Yusuf Mohamed, her brother, and Gandi Yusuf Mohamed, her other brother.
Prosecutors say they also took part in the scheme by claiming to run supposed food sites.