What was meant to feed vulnerable children during the COVID-19 pandemic
instead, prosecutors say, bankrolled a lavish lifestyle of luxury cars,
lakefront mansions, and international vacations for a cadre of Somali-American
defendants.
The Feeding Our Future (FOF) scandal, now in its third year of indictments,
is one of the largest pandemic-relief fraud cases in US history, exposing
cracks in Minnesota’s social safety net and drawing scrutiny to Governor Tim
Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison.
At the heart of the case is the Federal Child
Nutrition Program, a USDA-backed initiative reimbursing nonprofits for meals
served to low-income children when schools closed in 2020.
FOF, a Fridley-based nonprofit founded by Aimee Bock in 2014, positioned
itself as a bridge for Minnesota’s Somali community — the largest in the US,
with over 80,000 residents in the Twin Cities.
FOF contracted with vendors to distribute meals, who were then reimbursed by
the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE).
Prosecutors allege the program became a
“phantom feast” between 2019 and 2022.
Defendants claimed to have served 91 million meals — enough to feed every
Minnesota child twice — at more than 250 sites, including fictitious addresses.
Records show rosters of attendees were often duplicated, or photos of pets
were used as evidence of participation.
While FOF disbursed $3.4 million in 2019, the amount exploded to $200
million by 2021, with Bock approving sham sites and collecting kickbacks.
The scheme came to light in July 2019, when
MDE auditors noted irregularities: inflated meal claims, incomplete
documentation, and resistance from FOF officials.
“We saw red flags waving like a parade,” a former MDE employee told CBS
News.
As reimbursements surged, MDE and Ellison’s office compiled evidence of
criminality, including suspicious wire transfers and links to overseas
accounts, before escalating the matter to the FBI in early 2021.
A multi-agency investigation ensued, involving hundreds of agents from the
FBI, IRS, and US Postal Inspection Service.
FBI raids on January 20, 2022, seized
computers, ledgers, and cash-filled briefcases. Court exhibits show defendants
bragged in texts about “cash boxes” and international wires.
By September 2022, 47 defendants were charged; as of November 2025, 78
individuals faced indictments.
Of those, 56 have pleaded guilty, seven were convicted at trial, and the
rest await proceedings. Sentences have been severe.
In October 2025, Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, 24, received 10 years and $48
million in restitution for funneling $47 million through his restaurant without
serving a meal.
US District Judge Nancy E. Brasel condemned him: “Where others saw a crisis
and rushed to help, you saw money and rushed to steal.”
The misuse of funds extended beyond food.
Court documents show defendants purchased 10 luxury vehicles, including
Lamborghinis and Range Rovers, and invested in real estate — including a
$250,000 mansion and a $2.7 million “mansion-style” office.
Funds were also wired overseas to Kenya and Turkey, buying villas and
farmland.
Some fraudsters, like Abdullahe Nur Jesow, billed lavish Maldives vacations
as business trips, while photos from seized phones show duffels of $100 bills
and diamond-encrusted watches.
The human toll is stark. Children in food deserts — including Somali
families — went hungry, while vendors allegedly bribed MDE insiders for
approvals.
Broader investigations suggest over $1 billion in state social-services
fraud, touching autism therapies and housing aid, with unverified claims that
some funds reached Somalia.
Politically, the scandal has placed Governor
Walz under pressure. On December 13, 2025, he addressed the state: “Minnesota
is a state that chooses not to let people go hungry or homeless or uneducated.
However, that generosity has been taken advantage of by an organized group of
fraudsters and criminals.”
He pledged a new anti-fraud czar at the Department of Human Services and defended
the state’s role in prosecuting offenders: “I take responsibility for putting
people in jail. You commit fraud in Minnesota, you’re going to prison.”
Attorney General Ellison’s office played a
central role, escalating the investigation to the FBI and pursuing legal action
to dissolve FOF in March 2022, along with 17 other sham nonprofits by May 2024.
“The leaders of these nonprofits harmed public trust by pocketing funds
intended to feed children,” Ellison said.
He credited his team for successfully shutting them down while navigating a
challenging political environment.
As of November 24, 2025, the probe continues.
Abdirashid Bixi Dool became the 78th charged, accused of laundering $1.1
million through a fake meal site.
Whistleblowers allege evidence tampering at DHS, prompting Oversight
Committee inquiries.
Community leaders, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, have condemned inflammatory
rhetoric from national figures, emphasizing accountability over ethnicity.
The scandal underscores a breach of trust in a
state celebrated for its immigrant communities and social programs.
“Minnesota deserves better,” Acting US Attorney Joseph H. Thompson said.
As trials extend into 2026, the story remains clear: a program designed to
feed the vulnerable was hijacked for the benefit of the few, leaving a bitter
legacy for taxpayers and children alike.
