Minnesota Somali fraud: Man pleads guilty to stealing $1.1mn from Feeding Our Future meals scheme

A Minnesota man admitted to running a scheme that defrauded a federal child nutrition program, according to a plea agreement. Abdirashid Bixi Dool pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud, admitting he took part in a scheme from March to December 2021. Prosecutors say Dool submitted false meal counts, inflated vendor invoices and created fake rosters of children for two nonprofits: Bilaal Mosque Inc. in Pelican Rapids and Multicultural Resource Center Inc. in Moorhead. The plea agreement says Dool sometimes claimed more than 40,000 meals served in a week and sent himself fake attendance rosters by email. These actions led the Minnesota Department of Education to pay nearly $1.1 million through Feeding Our Future, a nonprofit sponsor. The wire fraud charge specifically relates to a Dec. 1, 2021 email Dool sent to himself with fake rosters attached.