Somalis among dozens charged in US with Covid fraud

47 people have been accused in the US of the theft of $250 million (£220 million) in an alleged Covid relief fraud scam, including Somali nationals with residence in the US and ties to Kenya.

They are charged with stealing from a program designed to feed kids during the pandemic.

Federal officials in the US revealed on Tuesday that the suspects are associated with Aimee Bock, the founder and executive director of the non-profit organization Feeding Our Future, which was a sponsor of the Federal Child Nutrition Program in Minnesota.

Ms. Bock claims she did nothing wrong.

Employees of Feeding Our Future allegedly recruited people and organizations to launch Federal Child Nutrition Program locations across the state of Minnesota as part of the alleged conspiracy. 

  These websites, developed and run by the defendants and others, boasted that within days or weeks of their creation, they were providing meals to thousands of kids every day.

According to a statement from the Department of Justice (DoJ), the accused are suspected of issuing bills for meals they purportedly did not serve to inexistent youngsters.

The government claims that the defendants used the loot to pay for luxury cars, homes, and businesses in Minnesota, as well as real estate in Ohio and Kentucky, as well as properties in coastal Kenya and Turkey, and pay for overseas trips.

Mohammed Jama Ismail, one of the accused, was detained in the US in April while attempting to travel from the country to Kenya via Amsterdam.

Last month, he admitted to falsifying his passport.

According to FBI director Christopher Wray, today's indictments "reveal an appalling effort to steal public funds intended to care for children in need in what amounts to the greatest pandemic relief fraud operation yet."

Allegations against the suspects include conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering, and bribery.

Most of the East African immigrants in Minnesota are from Somalia and Ethiopia.