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Minnesota fraud scandal: Sixth family member who met with AG Ellison set to plead guilty

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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.

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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.

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“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.

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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.



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Minnesota’s Pohlkamp helps Denver beat Wisconsin 2-1 for 11th national hockey title, 3rd in 5 years

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Minnesota’s Pohlkamp helps Denver beat Wisconsin 2-1 for 11th national hockey title, 3rd in 5 years


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Stamkos leads Predators past Wild 2-1, locking Minnesota into the West’s third seed

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Stamkos leads Predators past Wild 2-1, locking Minnesota into the West’s third seed


NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Steven Stamkos scored a goal and added an assist to lead the Nashville Predators to a 2-1 victory over Minnesota on Saturday, locking the Wild into the third seed in the Western Conference for the playoffs.

Matthew Wood also scored and Justus Annunen made 21 saves for the Predators, 4-1-1 in their last six.

Minnesota will face the Dallas Stars in the first round of the playoffs.

Michael McCarron scored and Jesper Wallstedt made 20 saves for the Wild, losers of two straight.

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The Predators are now three points behind the Los Angeles Kings for the Western Conference’s second wild card. The Kings defeated the Edmonton Oilers earlier Saturday. Nashville has two games remaining and the Kings three.

Stamkos scored the game’s first goal with 4:59 remaining in the opening period on a wraparound tucked just inside the left post.

The goal was the 40th of the season for Stamkos, the eighth time in his career that he’s scored 40 or more.

Nashville Predators right wing Luke Evangelista (77) keeps Minnesota Wild left wing Kirill Kaprizov (97) away from the net during the first period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn. Credit: AP/Mark Humphrey

Wood made it 2-0 at 6:34 of the second after Stamkos corralled the rebound of Nick Perbix’s shot and found Wood in the slot, where he beat Wallstedt with a wrist shot.

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McCarron, traded by Nashville to Minnesota prior to this season’s trade deadline, scored at 6:54 of the third to avoid the Wild’s first shutout of the season. It was his second post-trade goal.

The Wild did not dress forwards Joel Eriksson Ek and Mats Zuccarello or defenseman Jared Spurgeon for the game.

Nashville captain Roman Josi returned to the lineup after missing Thursday night’s game against the Utah Mammoth with an upper-body injury.

Minnesota Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt (30) blocks a shot by...

Minnesota Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt (30) blocks a shot by Nashville Predators right wing Matthew Wood (71) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn. Credit: AP/Mark Humphrey

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Wild at St. Louis on Monday night.

Predators host San Jose on Monday night.

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Ahead of fishing opener, health officials update fish consumption guidelines

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Ahead of fishing opener, health officials update fish consumption guidelines


The new fish consumption guidelines include warnings about eating too much fish caught in northeastern Minnesota lakes and rivers, where fish tend to have higher mercury levels. And the state warns against consuming fish from the Vermillion River, south of the Twin Cities, because of PFAS contamination.



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