In the summer of 2019, state officials in Minnesota identified initial signs of a fraudulent operation that would ultimately drain over $1 billion in taxpayer money. However, their investigations were swiftly met with resistance from leaders of the charitable organization known as Feeding Our Future, according to multiple former employees at the Minnesota Department of Education.
This scandal, which has so far resulted in 61 convictions, is largely seen as an unfortunate consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the height of the crisis, then-Attorney General Merrick Garland described it as “the largest pandemic relief fraud scheme” in the United States. Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick said that those convicted had exploited the public health crisis to execute a large-scale fraud operation, stealing funds intended to feed children.
However, state authorities argue that the fraudulent activities designed to divert federal dollars intended for disadvantaged, food-insecure, or disabled individuals began much earlier, only a few months after Minnesota’s Democratic Governor, Tim Walz, assumed office in 2019. In the initial stages of the operation, members of Feeding Our Future charged the state approximately $3.4 million.
This figure had dramatically increased by 2021. By the time the operation was finally brought to a halt, Feeding Our Future had falsely claimed to have provided 91 million meals, for which the group received almost $250 million in federal funding, according to federal prosecutors. This money, they claim, was not used to feed children as alleged, but instead was used to fund extravagant lifestyles.
Investigators have traced the origin of the funds to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which was overseen by state governments. In Minnesota, these funds were managed by the state Department of Education, and were historically directed towards providing meals to children through schools and daycare centers.
In recent weeks, renewed attention has been cast on the state’s failure to identify and halt the fraudulent activities before they spiraled out of control. Conservative politicians and bloggers have accused the state’s liberal establishment of being intimidated into inaction by Feeding Our Future. This is because the food charity, which contracted within the state’s large Somali community, sought to portray early scrutiny of the nonprofit as racially motivated.
State officials have informed CBS News that they encountered problems with Aimee Bock, the woman later convicted of orchestrating the fraud, long before the pandemic began. They began to document her “concerning behavior,” with one former employee revealing to CBS News that Bock quickly began pressuring state workers who might have had follow-up questions or concerns before processing reimbursements.
Within weeks of Feeding Our Future’s initial submissions to the state, Minnesota workers noted that the charity was claiming to serve an unrealistic number of meals, which was “not consistent” with reality, according to one official.
The situation was further complicated when the pandemic took hold. The state officials told CBS News that the scheme rapidly accelerated, as safeguards were deliberately removed to ensure that residents in need did not go hungry.
However, as state workers began to ask more questions and even halted payment on some receipts, Feeding Our Future responded by increasing pressure. In 2020, the charitable group filed a lawsuit alleging that the state had “harmed Feeding Our Future by subjecting it to additional procedural hurdles in violation of federal regulations.”
The lawsuit claimed that the state “intentionally and wrongfully refused to do business with Feeding Our Future and the community it serves by discriminating… because of Feeding Our Future’s race, national origin, color, and religion.” However, a judge dismissed the civil case after the FBI executed search warrants on Feeding Our Future and publicized its investigation in January 2022.
The entire debacle unfolded in the wake of the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, occurring at a time when racial tensions were already running high. Seven months later, federal prosecutors announced criminal charges against 47 individuals in connection with the Feeding Our Future scandal. The number of those charged has since risen to 78, with 59 having been convicted, including Bock, who is awaiting sentencing.
In a phone conversation on Thursday, Bock’s attorney, Kenneth Udoibok, stated that his client plans to appeal her conviction. He denied the allegation that Bock had pressured state officials to avoid properly scrutinizing meal claims, stating, “That doesn’t meet the smell test. A government agency with all its resources, and its reputation is afraid of Amy? That is just rich. It’s a lie.”
Udoibok argued that the state Department of Education employees making these accusations were not acknowledging their own role in the massive fraud, stating, “No one in the state of Minnesota, no one in the Department of Education has taken any responsibility for this fraud that they allowed to go through.”
While Bock, who is white, was identified by investigators as the mastermind, most of the other defendants and alleged co-conspirators are Somalis. This has provoked fresh attacks from the Trump administration against the state’s large Somali community.
In recent days, President Trump has claimed that Somali migrants “ripped off” Minnesota and has referred to the state as a “hellhole.” He has described people from Somalia as “garbage” who “contribute nothing,” stating, “I don’t want them in our country, I’ll be honest with you.” This week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement began enhanced operations in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, which is home to a large population of Somalis.
Governor Walz responded on Thursday, stating that Mr. Trump’s comments were “unprecedented for a United States president,” and he denounced Trump’s barrage of anti-Somali statements as “vile, racist lies and slander towards our fellow Minnesotans.” On “Meet the Press” last weekend, Walz stated that the fraud cases are “totally disconnected” from the broader Somali community, adding, “To demonize an entire community on the actions of a few, it’s lazy.”
House Republicans launched an investigation into the governor’s handling of the fraud cases on Wednesday. Walz has been repeatedly criticized for his slow response, but he maintains that his administration detected the fraud early on and reported it first to the USDA, and then to the FBI.
Prosecutors have charged nearly a dozen other individuals in cases involving other alleged COVID-related fraud in Minnesota. These schemes are believed to have operated similarly to the original one focused on nutrition funds, but involve housing assistance and behavioral health services. Prosecutors in these cases have charged an additional eight individuals, most of whom are Somali, bringing the total number of those charged to 87, with 61 convictions.
Sources at the U.S. attorney’s office have informed CBS News that the investigations are ongoing in all of the fraud cases, including Feeding Our Future, with the total amount of stolen money surpassing $1 billion.
