Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s secret meeting with Feeding Our Future fraudsters now haunts him as the sixth Mohammed family member prepares to plead guilty, exposing potential naivety or worse in Democrat leadership.
Fraudster Records Meeting with Ellison
Ikram Mohammed pleaded guilty to fraud charges tied to the Feeding Our Future scheme. She secretly recorded a December 2021 meeting with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. Mohammed and associates claimed state agencies discriminated against their Somali community. They requested Ellison’s intervention to restore funding cut due to irregularities. The group also discussed political donations during the encounter. This audio has resurfaced amid family guilty pleas.
Mohammed Family’s Guilty Pleas Accelerate
Ikram Mohammed entered her guilty plea on Thursday. Her husband pleaded guilty the same day. Four more family members—mother, sister, and two brothers—scheduled pleas for Friday, marking the sixth in the family. Brother Gandhi Mohammed rejected the deal. His trial starts April 20. The family ran fake meal sites from a small Minneapolis building, billing over $1 million for phantom meals. They stole $14.7 million through kickbacks and laundering.
Feeding Our Future Fraud Scale
Feeding Our Future administered federal child nutrition funds during COVID-19. The nonprofit fronted a $250-300 million fraud ring, the largest U.S. pandemic scam. Over 70 charged after FBI raids in January 2022. Fraudsters exploited lax oversight with fake sites serving no real meals. State agencies flagged issues and cut funding in 2021. Fraudsters sued, prompting Ellison’s office to defend the state. Aimee Bock, FOF executive, already convicted.
Mohammed recruited her family into the scheme. They operated sites in Minneapolis’s North Side Somali community. Federal prosecutors drive the cases. Taxpayers lost hundreds of millions. Recovery efforts continue amid stricter oversight now.
Ellison Defends “Good Faith” Meeting
Ellison claims he met fraudsters in good faith as constituents. His op-ed states he took no action for them. He shut down donation discussions and denies wrongdoing. His office says fraudsters exploited routine engagement, yielding no results. Ellison later acknowledged the fraud’s massive scale. He returned donations post-conviction. No federal charges target him. Recorder identity remains unclear in some reports.
Political Scrutiny and Conservative Pushback
Republicans like Rep. Harry Niska demand Ellison staff emails for transparency. Attorney Kenneth Udoibok, defending Aimee Bock, alleges Ellison and Walz share blame for poor oversight. The Center of the American Experiment highlights Ellison’s naivety and donations. Conservatives view the meeting as evidence of enablement through race-based appeals. GOP leverages this for accountability amid Minnesota elections. Long-term, it erodes trust in pandemic programs and exposes oversight gaps.
Sources:
CBS Minnesota: Leaked meeting audio: Keith Ellison, Feeding Our Future
KSTP: Ellison denies wrongdoing in secretly recorded meeting about Feeding Our Future
