Source: US FBI
MINNEAPOLIS – Mahad Ibrahim, Hamdi Hussein Omar, and Hibo Salah Daar each pleaded guilty to their respective roles in the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thomspon. Prosecutors have now obtained over 50 convictions scheme-wide.
“This milestone marks an extraordinary achievement by our team and our law enforcement partners,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. “For years, these elite federal agents and forensic accountants have tracked stolen money, cut through layers of deceit, and exposed a sprawling network of shell companies and fake meal claims. Their pursuit of justice has been relentless. Because of their work, we’ve uncovered not just one scheme, but a far-reaching fraud crisis that’s swamping Minnesota. This is public service at its finest. And this team is nowhere near finished.”
“The Federal Bureau of Investigation takes immense pride in its pivotal role in securing 50 convictions to date, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to holding accountable those who illicitly appropriate funds meant for the nourishment of underprivileged children,” said Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of FBI Minneapolis. “Taxpayers are entitled to assurance that their contributions will be utilized in a responsible and lawful manner. These three guilty pleas underscore the gravity with which the FBI addresses fraud perpetrated against the government.”
Mahad Ibrahim, 46, pleaded guilty to defrauding the federal child nutrition program through a nonprofit called ThinkTechAct Foundation, a/k/a Mind Foundry Learning Foundation, which Ibrahim founded and operated as its President. Ibrahim partnered with conspirators, including Abdiaziz Farah, who was convicted last year after a jury trial, in connection with program activities under the sponsorship of Feeding Our Future and Partners in Nutrition. Ibrahim admittedly took deliberate steps to avoid learning the full scale of his conspirators’ activities, which spanned dozens of program sites across the state. Even so, Ibrahim allowed ThinkTechAct to be used to further the fraud scheme, and he received substantial pay-outs from his conspirators in exchange. He also used another entity he controlled, MIB Holdings LLC, to launder some of his fraud proceeds, including to buy real estate in Ohio. Ibrahim’s participation in the scheme contributed to the loss of millions of taxpayer dollars. Ibrahim pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
Hamdi Hussein Omar, 29, participated in the scheme to defraud the federal child nutrition program with several conspirators, including Salim Said, who was charged in the same indictment and was convicted after trial earlier this year. Omar’s conspirators created a fake food distribution site in Waite Park, Minnesota, at a small market in a strip mall. Omar knew and allowed her conspirators to use her name as the supposed operator of that site. Those conspirators then began claiming, falsely, to serve about 2,000 meals to children from that site every day of the week. In all, over a matter of months, they claimed to serve half a million meals from that small, Waite Park market. To further the scheme, Omar created a company called Feeding Our Youth, which she falsely held out as the food vendor for the Waite Park site. She and her conspirators also supported their program reimbursement claims with phony attendance rosters purporting to document the children they fed. Those rosters listed made-up children with fake ages. In all, Omar and her conspirators caused a taxpayer loss of $1.4 million. Omar pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.
Hibo Salah Daar, 51, participated in the Feeding Our Future scheme through an entity she controlled called Northside Wellness Center Corporation. In November 2020, Daar enrolled Northside Wellness in the federal child nutrition program as a food-distribution site under the sponsorship of Feeding Our Future. Daar and her conspirators then used Northside Wellness to defraud the program and steal taxpayer dollars. Northside Wellness claimed to serve 52,000 meals to children in the month of January 2021 and then, just two months later, claimed to be serving 40,000 meals to children every week. Those claims were false. Daar and her conspirators supported those meal counts with phony invoices. And Daar authorized payment of $72,000 in bribes to a Feeding Our Future employee to keep the scheme running. In all, the Northside Wellness claims caused $2.4 million in taxpayer losses. Daar pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.
These cases result from an investigation conducted by the FBI, IRS – Criminal Investigations, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Mahad pled guilty on July 24, 2025, and Omar and Daar pled guilty on August 1, 2025, all in U.S. District Court before Judge Nancy E. Brasel. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled at a later date.
Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew S. Ebert, Harry M. Jacobs, and Daniel W. Bobier are prosecuting these cases. Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Baune is handling the seizure and forfeiture of assets.