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A “central figure” in a $250 million Minnesota welfare fraud scheme was arrested in Somalia this week after spending nearly four years on the run, the Justice Department announced Friday.
Abdikerm Eidleh, 42, was one of the original suspects indicted in connection to the nation’s largest COVID-19 fraud scheme – the infamous Feeding Our Future scam. He was taken into custody in Somalia’s capital city of Mogadishu on Thursday, according to prosecutors.
In September 2022, Eidleh was hit with 31 counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery, federal programs bribery, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering for his alleged role in the scheme to steal pandemic relief funds from a federal program meant to feed hungry children in need.
Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald – President Trump’s fraud czar – described Eidleh as a “central figure in one of the largest fraud schemes in Minnesota history.”
“He not only stole taxpayer dollars, but he also robbed vulnerable children of critical resources they desperately needed,” McDonald said in a statement.
“Rather than answer for his crimes in the United States, he fled to Somalia in a futile attempt to evade justice,” the DOJ official continued. “That attempt ended thanks to the exceptional work of our FBI partners.
“The Department of Justice will continue to track down and prosecute fraudsters wherever they run and wherever they hide.”
Minnesota US Attorney Daniel Rosen said Eidleh’s arrest demonstrates that “if you commit fraud against the American taxpayer, and try hiding across the globe, the long arm of justice will find you.”
The indictment against Eidleh alleges he was responsible for recruiting and supporting criminals who set up sham food sites and fake vendor networks to bill the government for millions of meals that were never actually served to children.
Eidleh and other Feeding Our Future employees solicited and received bribes and kickbacks from individuals and companies seeking approval to operate fraudulent meal distribution sites, according to the DOJ.
The indictment further alleges that Eidleh created his own fraudulent food sites, claimed his sites were serving meals to thousands of children per day and created shell companies purporting to be meal vendors for his fake sites.
“Eidleh deposited more than $5 million in kickbacks, bribes, and other fraud proceeds into accounts associated with his shell companies, using them to conceal the true nature and source of the illegally obtained funds,” according to the DOJ.
Aimee Bock, the mastermind behind the Feeding Our Future scam, was slapped with a 41 year prison sentence in May after being convicted of all counts.
At least 79 people have been charged in connection with the Feeding Our Future scheme and more than 60 have been convicted of crimes.
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