Current:Home > Scams7 Minnesotans accused in massive scheme to defraud pandemic food program to stand trial-LoTradeCoin
7 Minnesotans accused in massive scheme to defraud pandemic food program to stand trial
View Date:2024-12-24 00:03:58
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Opening statements are expected Monday in the fraud trial of seven people charged in what federal prosecutors have called a massive scheme to exploit lax rules during the COVID-19 pandemic and steal from a program meant to provide meals to children in Minnesota.
The seven will be the first of 70 defendants to go on trial in the alleged scam. Eighteen others have already pleaded guilty.
Prosecutors have said the seven collectively stole over $40 million in a conspiracy that cost taxpayers $250 million — one of the largest pandemic-related fraud cases in the country. Federal authorities say they have recovered about $50 million.
Prosecutors say just a fraction of the money went to feed low-income kids, and that the rest was spent on luxury cars, jewelry, travel and property.
THE ALLEGED PLOT
The food aid came from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was administered by the state Department of Education. Nonprofits and other partners under the program were supposed to serve meals to kids.
Two of the groups involved, Feeding Our Future and Partners in Nutrition, were small nonprofits before the pandemic, but in 2021 they disbursed around $200 million each. Prosecutors allege they produced invoices for meals that were never served, ran shell companies, laundered money, indulged in passport fraud, and accepted kickbacks.
THE BIG PICTURE
An Associated Press analysis published last June documented how thieves across the country plundered billions in federal COVID-19 relief dollars in the greatest grift in U.S. history. The money was meant to fight the worst pandemic in a century and stabilize an economy in freefall.
But the AP found that fraudsters potentially stole more than $280 billion, while another $123 billion was wasted or misspent. Combined, the loss represented 10% of the $4.3 trillion the government disbursed in COVID relief by last fall. Nearly 3,200 defendants have been charged, according to the U.S. Justice Department. About $1.4 billion in stolen pandemic aid has been seized.
THIS CASE
The defendants going on trial Monday before U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel in Minneapolis are Abdiaziz Shafii Farah; Mohamed Jama Ismail; Abdimajid Mohamed Nur; Said Shafii Farah; Abdiwahab Maalim Aftin; Mukhtar Mohamed Shariff; and Hayat Mohamed Nur. They have all pleaded not guilty. Their trial is expected to last around six weeks.
“The defendants’ fraud, like an aggressive cancer, spread and grew,” prosecutors wrote in a summary of their case.
Prosecutors say many of the purported feeding sites were nothing more than parking lots and derelict commercial spaces. Others turned out to be city parks, apartment complexes and community centers.
“By the time the defendants’ scheme was exposed in early 2022, they collectively claimed to have served over 18 million meals from 50 unique locations for which they fraudulently sought reimbursement of $49 million from the Federal Child Nutrition Program,” prosecutors wrote.
FUTURE CASES
Among the defendants awaiting trial is Aimee Bock, the founder of Feeding our Future. She’s one of 14 defendants expected to face trial together at a later date. Bock has maintained her innocence, saying she never stole and saw no evidence of fraud among her subcontractors.
THE POLITICS
The scandal stirred up the 2022 legislative session and campaign in Minnesota.
Republicans attacked Gov. Tim Walz, saying he should have stopped the fraud earlier. But Walz pushed back, saying the state’s hands were tied by a court order in a lawsuit by Feeding Our Future to resume payments despite its concerns. He said the FBI asked the state to continue the payments while the investigation continued.
The Minnesota Department of Education now has an independent inspector general who is better empowered to investigate fraud and waste.
veryGood! (2)
Related
- To Protect the Ozone Layer and Slow Global Warming, Fertilizers Must Be Deployed More Efficiently, UN Says
- Inside Ukraine’s covert Center 73, where clandestine missions shape the war behind the frontline
- The 12 Days of Trump Court: A year of appearances, from unprecedented to almost routine
- Whisky wooing young Chinese away from ‘baijiu’ as top distillers target a growing market
- Ryan Reynolds Clarifies Taylor Swift’s Role as Godmother to His Kids With Blake Lively
- Ukraine says it shot down Russian fighter jets and drones as the country officially marks Christmas
- A family tragedy plays out in the ring in 'The Iron Claw'
- Idaho college murders suspect Bryan Kohberger could stand trial in summer 2024 as prosecutors request new dates
- Wildfire map: Thousands of acres burn near New Jersey-New York border; 1 firefighter dead
- An Israeli airstrike in Syria kills a high-ranking Iranian general
Ranking
- Olivia Munn Says She “Barely Knew” John Mulaney When She Got Pregnant With Their Son
- Migrants cross U.S. border in record numbers, undeterred by Texas' razor wire and Biden's policies
- A sight not seen in decades: The kennels finally empty at this animal shelter
- Lose a limb or risk death? Growing numbers among Gaza’s thousands of war-wounded face hard decisions
- Full House Star Dave Coulier Shares Stage 3 Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Diagnosis
- Man killed in shooting in Florida mall, police say
- Nothing to fear with kitchen gear: 'America's Test Kitchen' guide to tools, gadgets
- Bobbie Jean Carter, sister of Nick and Aaron Carter, dies at 41
Recommendation
-
Congress returns to unfinished business and a new Trump era
-
Pope Francis denounces the weapons industry as he makes a Christmas appeal for peace in the world
-
Maine storm has delayed a key vote on California-style limits for gas vehicles
-
Restriction on carrying guns in Omaha and Lincoln violate Nebraska law, lawsuits say
-
'I was in total shock': Woman wins $1 million after forgetting lotto ticket in her purse
-
Southwest Airlines cancels hundreds of flights, disrupting some holiday travelers
-
Pope Francis denounces the weapons industry as he makes a Christmas appeal for peace in the world
-
The right to protest is under threat in Britain, undermining a pillar of democracy