75th defendant indicted in Feeding Our Future

Muna Wais Fidhin, of Savage, age 44, become the 75th defendant indicted in the sprawling free-food scandal. Fidhin made her first appearance this afternoon at the federal courthouse in downtown St. Paul. She was released on bond.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office put out a press release on the the latest case. It includes a warning from Acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson,

With the 75th defendant charged in the Feeding Our Future scandal, the message could not be clearer. Feeding Our Future is only one of the many frauds against the state we are pursuing. If you touched these frauds in any way, pick up the phone and call the FBI today. You will still be held accountable, but it will be far better for you than if you wait until we come knocking.

Fidhin is charged with 10 felony counts: three wire fraud, four bribery and three money laundering. She ran a company, M5 Cafe, and a nonprofit M5 Care, that I wrote about here and here. Her operation was discussed in the indictment of Hoda Ali Abdi, defendant No. 70.

Her food distribution site for M5 Care, the nonprofit, operated under the sponsorship of the St. Paul-based Partners in Nutrition, d/b/a Partners in Quality Care (PIQC). She billed PIQC around $400,000.

In addition, an exhibit filed in the most recent Feeding Our Future (FOF) courtroom case indicates that her M5 Cafe took nearly $550,000 out of that nonprofit.

Between PIQC and FOF, Fidhin took nearly $1 million out of the free-food programs. The indictment alleges that she used more than $310,000 of the money to pay off a mortgage and wired more than $25,000 overseas.