United States District Judge Nancy E. Brasel sentenced Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, age 36, to 28 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his role in a $300 million fraud scheme that exploited a federally program to feed hungry kids during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Farah helped orchestrate the largest known COVID-19 fraud scheme called Feeding Our Future in Minnesota. Farah and his co-defendants stole more than $47 million by claiming to serve 18 million meals to kids at more than 30 food distribution sites.
Farah was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $47,920,514. He's the 73rd person charged in connection to the scheme.
In June 2024, after a seven-week trial before Judge Brasel, a federal jury convicted Farah of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit federal programs bribery, false statements in a passport application, conspiracy to commit money laundering, two counts of federal programs bribery, six counts of wire fraud, and 11 counts of money laundering.
Farah was the co-owner of Empire Cuisine & Market, an entity that he enrolled in the Federal Child Nutrition Program in April 2020, during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Farah was among the very first defendants to see an opportunity for fraud and exploit it. Farah immediately opened a number of fraudulent program sites and began falsely claiming to serve meals to thousands of children per day.
Many of the purported “sites” served no meals at all and were nothing more than parking lots or vacant commercial spaces. Farah and his co-defendants “papered-up” the fraudulent scheme, including by creating and submitting fraudulent meal counts and invoices.
Farah was involved in the scheme’s use of phony rosters with fake children’s names.
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Few of the names on the rosters matched the names of real students attending the local school districts, and many of the names used by Farah were absurd and fake, names like “Serious Problem” and “Britishy Melony.” In addition, Farah routinely directed the flow of fraudulent funds so that his co-conspirators got their “cuts” of the stolen taxpayer money.
Farah engaged in a corrupt “pay-to-play” system, where he paid thousands of dollars in bribes and kickbacks to personnel at Feeding Our Future and Partners in Nutrition. Farah pocketed more than $8 million during his 18 months in the fraud.
As presented at trial, Farah sent text messages to his co-defendants about their ill-gotten gains, stating “in 7 months if things stay the same you are a multi millionaire with 0 debt” and “Bro the next multi legit millionaires will be me and you.”
Using the taxpayer money meant for needy kids, Farah purchased five luxury vehicles for himself in about six months, including over $300,000 for a Porsche, a GMC truck, and a Tesla.
Farah used about $4.2 million in fraudulently-obtained taxpayer funds to purchase real estate throughout the Twin Cities and in Kentucky, which included buying two lakefront lots.
Farah sent the taxpayer money he stole overseas, purchasing real estate in Kenya and a high-rise apartment building in Nairobi.
Farah laundered the fraud proceeds through China. American law enforcement can't recover money sent overseas.
Neither these funds nor Farah’s international real estate holdings have been, or can be, seized or forfeited. In January 2022, when the Feeding Our Future search warrants were executed, federal agents seized Farah’s U.S. passport from his home.
Farah retained an attorney and was told he was a target of the federal investigation.
Two months later, on March 22, 2022, Farah went to the Minneapolis Passport Agency to apply for a new U.S. passport. Farah lied on his passport application, falsely claiming his passport was lost, rather than seized by federal agents. Farah obtained a new U.S. passport that day.
Less than two weeks later, Farah attempted to leave the country, purchasing a one-way ticket to Kenya, where he owned property paid for by the taxpayer money he stole. Law enforcement acted quickly to charge Farah with passport fraud and take him into custody. In June 2024, at the conclusion of his 7-week trial, Farah and others attempted to bribe a juror with $120,000 in cash in exchange for a not guilty verdict.
Farah and four others were indicted in a separate federal case for the juror bribery scheme. Farah has pled guilty in the juror bribery case and is pending sentencing in that case before Judge David S. Doty. He faces additional sentencning for attempting to bribe a juror.
In imposing the 28-year sentence, Brasel explained the defendant “came to this country as a refugee” and that “many of the opportunities” in Farah’s life came through public agencies and non-profit organizations, noting that Farah received housing, school, a full-tuition college grant, and worked in the public sector.
“Given that background, it is ironic at best that, as the government aimed no child went hungry during the pandemic, you saw the opportunity to fraudulently make money.” Brasel continued, “You achieved successes here in the United States and yet you’ve shown utter and flagrant disregard for the laws of the United States.”
Brasel found that Farah’s crime was “breathtakingly elaborate” and that he acted out of “pure unmitigated greed.” She told the defendant, “The repercussions of your crime will be felt in Minnesota and in your community—the refugee community—for a long time.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson said that Farah should face a long time in prison.
“This country gave Farah everything. A home. Citizenship. A free college education," Thompson said. "After that he went on to public employment with the state of Minnesota. And how did he repay this country and this state? By robbing us blind. He has gotten every opportunity, and this is how he used it. Farah didn’t want the American dream. He wanted to be rich. He wanted to be wealthy. He thought he was entitled to it. He won the lottery of life, he was given everything by this country, and he repaid us with a life of crime. He has done untold damage to this state.”
Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston, Sr. of FBI Minneapolis said that the ma
“Abdiaziz Shafii Farah’s conviction serves as a stark reminder of the moral decay that can arise when individuals exploit systems designed to protect the most vulnerable among us,” Winston said. “The egregious actions of Farah, who misappropriated over $28 million meant to nourish underserved children during a critical time, exemplify a betrayal of societal trust. Today’s sentence not only underscores the legal repercussions of such greed, but also sends a resounding message: Justice will not only be swift, but also unyielding."
The case is the result of an investigation by the FBI, IRS – Criminal Investigations, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harry M. Jacobs, Matthew S. Ebert, and Daniel W. Bobier prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Baune is handling the seizure and forfeiture of assets.
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