DOJ charges nonprofit with $250 million pandemic fraud scheme

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published 21 September 2022

The Justice Department announced Tuesday that 47 people are being charged with stealing $250 million from a federal program meant to provide food for children in need during the pandemic, CNN reports.

The DOJ is calling this the largest COVID-19 related fraud scheme that investigators have discovered. CNN reports that the suspects are facing conspiracy charges, wire fraud, money laundering, and paying/receiving illegal kickbacks.

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Feeding Our Future submitted its claims to the Minnesota Department of Education, despite being aware that their submission was fraudulent. US Attorney Andrew M. Luger for the District of Minnesota called their actions "a brazen scheme of staggering proportions." He alleged that the defendants stole "more than a quarter of a billion dollars in federal funds to purchase luxury cars, houses, jewelry, and coastal resort property abroad," per CNN.

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Theara Coleman has worked as a staff writer at The Week since September 2022. She frequently writes about technology, education, literature and general news. She was previously a contributing writer and assistant editor at Honeysuckle Magazine, where she covered racial politics and cannabis industry news.

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