Feeding Our Future: guilty on all counts

A jury found two Feeding Our Future defendants guilty of all charges this afternoon, after a six-week trial at the federal courthouse in Minneapolis.

Deliberations lasted (at most) five hours. The jury began considering the case at 9 a.m. and media were alerted that a verdict had been reached shortly after 2 p.m.

This second courtroom trial in the sprawling free-food scandal featured two defendants. Aimee Bock, now aged 44, founder and CEO of the nonprofit Feeding Our Future. Bock was accused (and convicted) of masterminding the $250 million fraud scheme that stole taxpayer money earmarked to feed low-income children during the COVID pandemic years.

Bock was convicted on seven counts. Her current mugshot:

Her co-defendant was Salim Said, now aged 36, co-owner of the Safari Restaurant, and Bock’s largest vendor in her free-food network. He was convicted on 21 counts. His current mugshot:

That brings the total number of defendants convicted in the case to 44, either through guilty pleas or trial convictions. That total does not include defendants in the ongoing attempted juror bribery case arising from the first trial last year. To that point, a third guilty plea in the bribery case is scheduled to be entered on April 2.

It is said that Feeding Our Future represents the largest single COVID-era fraud in America.

Your correspondent was there this afternoon, eventually. By the time I could make it downtown, the verdicts (guilty on all counts) had just been read and the judge (Nancy Brasel) was about to turn her attention to the question of pre-sentencing detention.

Neither of these defendants had been detained, pre-trial.

Judge Brasel explained that the default is to detain those convicted until sentencing, without making any distinction between those convicted of white-collar (financial) crimes and of violent crimes.

I witnessed U.S. Marshals then place both defendants into custody and lead them out of the courtroom. Both are now being held at the federal lockup within the Sherburne County jail. Sentencing will be scheduled for a later date.

After the court proceedings ended, I attended the press conference held by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota. Here is the full team assembled this afternoon:

Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa Kirkpatrick kicked off the event. Lead prosecutor Joe Thompson, Chief of the USAO’s Fraud and Public Corruption section, then followed and took questions.

Here is the press release issued by her office.

The No. 1 question was, “Would there be more indictments?” Thompson said that he expected there would be and added that the investigation was ongoing.

He was also asked how much money had been recovered. He repeated his past answer of $60 million.

I asked about any efforts to retrieve the four remaining international fugitives from justice. They are Defendant Nos. 2, 32, 59 and 61. Thompson replied that efforts were continuing, but he was not at liberty to provide any details at this time.

A media roundup:

Sahan Journal: Aimee Bock, Salim Said convicted in Feeding Our Future trial

KARE-11: Feeding Our Future Trial: Executive director found guilty on all counts

KSTP-5: Feeding Our Future co-defendants Bock, Said found guilty on all counts in meal fraud trial

Fox 9: Feeding Our Future verdict: Aimee Bock and Salim Said found guilty

WCCO-4: Feeding Our Future founder Aimee Bock found guilty in pandemic fraud trial

Star Tribune: Aimee Bock, Salim Said found guilty in Feeding Our Future fraud trial

PowerLine: Feeding Our Fraud: Guilty

AlphaNews: Jurors in Feeding Our Future trial return guilty verdicts

MPR News: Feeding Our Future head Aimee Bock convicted on all fraud charges

To quote the 1996 movie Fargo:

And for what? For a little bit of money. There’s more to life than a little money, you know. Don’t you know that? And here you are, and it’s a beautiful day. 

As I reported this morning, the next trial in the case is expected to begin April 21.