7 years in prison for fraud
Tezzaree El Amin Champion, age 28, was sentenced to seven years in prison for fraud yesterday at the federal courthouse in downtown Minneapolis. Prosecutors had asked for a 12-year sentence. In pre-sentence filings, the defense didn’t suggest a number other than “less.”
MPR News reports,
COVID loan fraudster gets 7 years, ordered to repay $3.5M
The scheme involved a whole host of frauds,
According to prosecution filings in the case, Champion defrauded at least a dozen entities including state and federal agencies, as well as nonprofits including the Otto Bremer Trust, Youthprise and the Greater Twin Cities United Way.
We had listed this case as No. 22 in our ScandalTracker, with a $1 million price tag, reflecting just one of the frauds. MPR reports that the total price tag of the frauds attempted may exceed $6 million. Some of the proceeds,
Champion was indicted back in May 2024, along with a confederate, Marcus Hamilton. Champion’s co-defendant is scheduled to be sentenced Monday, December 1.
MPR reminds listeners that,
Champion, 28, pleaded guilty in February to wire fraud, money laundering and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Champion is ineligible to own guns following his 2018 conviction in Hennepin County for shooting a man amid a dispute over a vehicle sale.
In addition,
Champion is the great-nephew of Minnesota Senate President Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, and the son of Minneapolis North basketball star Khalid El-Amin, who played for the University of Connecticut and the Chicago Bulls. Neither man is accused of wrongdoing in connection with the case.
Sounds like the younger Champion had all the advantages in the world. In court filings, Champion’s defense attorney describes him as “a dreamer.”
Despite his father’s success as a professional basketball player, Champion’s defense described a childhood of grinding poverty and near-starvation deprivation.
Elsewhere yesterday, Asad Ahmed Adow pled guilty in federal district court in downtown St. Paul to one count of wire fraud. Adow was involved in the fraud against the Medicaid program Housing Stabilization Services (HSS), which is listed as case No. 26 on ScandalTracker.
Since we first listed the HSS item, it has exploded into a major scandal, one likely costing taxpayers more than $100 million in losses. The amount of money involved in Adow’s case totaled less than $3 million. Adow’s brother filed a similar guilty plea last month in his case.
Adow’s sentencing guidelines suggest a prison term of 4 to 5 years. Swag included a BMW X4.