Minnesota
Minnesota fraud scandal: Sixth family member who met with AG Ellison set to plead guilty
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Yet another member of a family within Minnesota’s Somali community is expected to plead guilty Thursday in the massive fraud scandal that has drawn national attention and prompted criticism of Attorney General Keith Ellison over a meeting he held with members of the family in question.
Gandi Mohamed, 45, is expected to either plead guilty at a change of plea hearing scheduled for Thursday or choose to enter a plea of no contest, which would allow him to accept conviction and be sentenced without admitting guilt, according to court records.
Mohamed is the sixth member of his family who would be pleading guilty in the scheme prosecutors say fraudulently claimed to be serving meals while instead pocketing $14 million from the federal child nutrition program, Fox 9 Minneapolis reported.
Center of the American Experiment policy fellow Bill Glahn told Fox News Digital that “it’s good that he and his co-conspirators have all been convicted in the case, however, a courtroom trial would have been a useful exercise to show the public the scope and scale of the fraud.”
TOM EMMER CALLS FOR TIM WALZ, KEITH ELLISON TO ‘SERVE JAIL TIME’ IF FRAUD COVERUP ALLEGATIONS ARE TRUE
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and AG Keith Ellison will testify before Congress on March 4. (Mandel Ngan/AFP; Jerry Holt/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
The Mohamed family was present at the now infamous 2021 meeting between Ellison and members of the Somali community where would-be fraudsters could be heard asking the state’s attorney general to help them secure more funding, before the conversation turned to campaign donations.
“The only way that we can protect what we have is by inserting ourselves into the political arena. Putting our votes where it needs to be. But most importantly, putting our dollars in the right place. And supporting candidates that will fight to protect our interests,” one of the Somali community members says in the recording.
“That’s right,” Ellison responds.
JOSH HAWLEY STANDS BY ACCUSATIONS AFTER FIERY SENATE HEARING CLASH WITH MINNESOTA AG ELLISON
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing in the U.S. Capitol Building on March 4, 2026, in Washington, D.C. The committee held the hearing to examine the alleged misuse of federal funds intended for Minnesota social services and Medicaid programs. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Ellison has denied any wrongdoing regarding the recording, saying he was completely unaware of the fraudsters’ crimes at the time of the meeting. The meeting occurred before any convictions in the case and before President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice had indicted anyone.
“I took a meeting in good faith with people I didn’t know and some turned out to have done bad things. I did nothing for them and took nothing from them,” Ellison wrote in an April 2025 op-ed for the Minnesota Star Tribune.
Following that meeting, Gandi gave the maximum $2,500 campaign donation to Ellison that the attorney general returned to the Department of Justice in 2025.
TRUMP ADMIN SCORES MINNESOTA COURT WIN IN MEDICAID FRAUD CRACKDOWN
“Our Attorney General, Keith Ellison, is not only looking the other way but doing so after taking donations from these very fraudsters,” Republican Dalia al-Aqidi who is running for Congress in Minneapolis against Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., told Fox News Digital. “This is a betrayal of every Minnesotan who trusted him with that office.”
Al-Aqidi explained that the voters in her district are “furious” about the fraud scandal.
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“Which is why I’ve rolled out a five-point plan to prevent fraud before it starts,” al-Aqidi said. “This isn’t just about taxpayers, it’s about people who really need food and housing. Preventing fraud isn’t complicated, it just takes the political will to stop this type of abuse. It’s clear that this scheme is being used to buy votes, and that has to stop.”
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom and Alexis McAdams contributed to this report.
Minnesota
Severe Thunderstorms Expected Wednesday In Southern Minnesota With Large Hail And Strong Winds
UNDATED (WJON News) — A strong surface low-pressure system will move through the region on Wednesday and will be the driver of scattered showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon/early evening hours.
Severe thunderstorms are possible across southern Minnesota, with the primary threat of large hail (~1.5″). Damaging winds and a few tornadoes are also possible.
St. Cloud has officially had 1.32 inches of rain so far in June, which is 0.53 inches below
normal.
Dry weather returns Thursday and most of Friday, but will be followed by storm chances for the first half of the weekend.
Humourous St. Cloud Sign
For over two years, the sign outside the St. Cloud Vacuum and Sewing Center has been bringing smiles to drivers on Division Street. Check out some of the creative and funny signs that have been brightening the mood of St. Cloud.
Minnesota
Rosemount vs. Champlin Park: Live Score Updates of 2026 Minnesota High School Baseball Class 4A State Championship
MINNEAPOLIS — The No. 2 Champlin Park Rebels (22-6) play the No. 4 Rosemount Irish (24-5) in the Minnesota high school baseball Class 4A state championship game on Monday at Target Field.
Neither team has won a baseball state championship in its history.
The Rebels have won both state championship games by one run. They defeated No. 7 Andover 3-2 in the quarterfinal before outlasting Edina 8-7 in extra innings in the semifinal. The Rebels are led by senior catcher Cal Ockuly, who was scheduled to be in San Diego on Monday for Marine Corps training, but he is allowed to play.
Rosemount won its two state championship games via blowout. They defeated No. 5 Monticello 11-2 in the quarterfinal, and they defeated No. 1 Farmington 11-1 in the semifinal. The Irish scored 12 runs the section final, so they’ve scored 34 runs in the past three games.
Junior outfielder Oliver Anderson had four RBIs in the semifinal win against Farmington.
High School On SI will have half-inning recaps and score updates throughout the game.
Rosemount vs. Champlin Park: Live Score Updates of 2026 Minnesota High School Baseball Class 4A State Championship
Refresh for the latest update.
Live score: Rosemount 0, Champlin Park 0 — Top 2nd
SECOND INNING
FIRST INNING — Champlin Park 0, Rosemount 0
Senior Evan Boll is pitching for Rosemount to begin the game.
Rosemount gets a runner two second base with two outs, but Vendel gets a strikeout for the final out.
Champlin Park’s Donovan Vendel throws the first pitch of the game, and we’re underway after a long rain delay.
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Minnesota
Construction starts on Highway 65 in Blaine, with work set to wrap in 2030
Preliminary work began Monday on a multiyear construction project to improve a Twin Cities highway considered one of the most dangerous roads in Minnesota.
Crews are starting construction on Highway 65 between 121st Avenue/Paul Parkway and 97th Avenue in Blaine. The goal is to transform the highway into a freeway through the city, improving travel time and reducing crashes, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
Right now, Highway 65 is a 55-mph road with lights every quarter to half-mile. The city says 10 of the state’s 31 most dangerous intersections are on Highway 65. Approximately 60,000 drivers use the highway every day.
This summer, crews will work to widen it to carry traffic during construction, build crossovers to switch traffic and keep it moving during work at intersections, work on frontage and backage roads and install storm sewer pipes for drainage along the highway. As a result, some side streets will be temporarily closed and detoured.
The project will elevate the highway, converting existing intersections at 99th Avenue, 109th Avenue and 117th Avenue into interchanges.
A pedestrian bridge will be built across the freeway between 113th and 114th avenues, rerouting some existing local streets and driveway connections using frontage and backage roads between 97th and 125th avenues. Existing sidewalks will also be reconstructed to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
The project is expected to cost $195 million, with construction lasting through summer 2030.
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