Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, 24, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and three years of supervised release for his involvement in the Feeding Our Future fraud case. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen and handed down by United States District Judge Nancy E. Brasel in Minneapolis. Nur was also ordered to pay $47,920,514 in restitution.
According to evidence presented at trial, Nur and his co-defendants stole more than $47 million from federal child nutrition programs by falsely claiming to serve 18 million meals to children at over 30 distribution sites during the Covid-19 pandemic. The operation began with Empire Cuisine & Market, a small halal market in Shakopee that enrolled in the Federal Child Nutrition Program shortly after registering as a business.
Nur and others quickly established multiple program sites and claimed they were providing thousands of meals daily—claims that were found to be fraudulent. Testimony revealed that many of these locations did not serve any meals; some were simply parking lots or vacant spaces. In certain cases, local public schools provided legitimate meal services instead.
Nur played a central role by preparing and submitting false meal counts, invoices, and rosters filled with fake names of supposed recipients. He also participated in laundering proceeds through shell companies based both in the United States and Kenya. Through his own company, Nur Consulting LLC, he received more than $900,000 disguised as consulting payments.
The investigation showed that Nur used funds intended for needy children on personal expenses such as vehicles—a Dodge Ram pickup truck for $64,000 and a Hyundai Santa Fe for $35,000—as well as luxury travel including a honeymoon trip to the Maldives and jewelry purchases in Dubai totaling $30,000.
Additionally, Nur used part of the fraud proceeds to pay for academic dishonesty at Herzing University by hiring PayMeToDoYourHomework.com to complete coursework on his behalf for approximately $12,000 over two semesters. This resulted in him obtaining a bachelor’s degree despite low academic performance previously.
After being convicted following a seven-week trial concluded in June 2024, it was revealed that Nur attempted—with others—to bribe a juror with $120,000 cash for a not guilty verdict. He has pleaded guilty in this separate bribery case and awaits sentencing before United States District Judge David S. Doty; today’s sentence does not include punishment related to jury tampering.
Judge Brasel stated during sentencing: “It is so disappointing and so disheartening that where others saw a crisis and rushed to help, you saw money and rushed to steal.” She described his actions as “mindboggling” and characterized the conspiracy as both elaborate and blatant.
The investigation involved the FBI, IRS – Criminal Investigations division, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Prosecution was led by Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph H. Thompson, Harry M. Jacobs, Daniel W. Bobier; asset forfeiture is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Baune.
