Washington (Somalia Today) — U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar has rejected claims that pandemic-era welfare fraud in Minnesota helped fund Somalia’s al-Shabaab militants, saying any proven link would amount to a failure by federal law enforcement and the courts.
Speaking on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday, the Democrat from Minnesota said she was “pretty confident” the alleged terror connection is false. But she backed a full review by the U.S. Treasury and Congress.
“If there was a linkage in the money that they have stolen going to terrorism, then that is a failure of the FBI and our court system in not figuring that out,” Omar said.
Her comments came as President Donald Trump escalates attacks on Minnesota’s Somali community and on state officials.
He has focused on a network of pandemic-era fraud schemes centred on the now-defunct nonprofit Feeding Our Future, which prosecutors describe as the largest Covid-19 relief fraud in the country.
Minnesota fraud case
Federal prosecutors first charged 47 people in 2022 over what they said was a $250 million plot to steal federal child nutrition funds.
Defendants allegedly claimed to feed children who never received meals. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI later expanded the case, saying the total fraud is closer to $300 million.
According to court documents and an FBI summary, defendants allegedly used the money to buy luxury cars, houses, and overseas property. Most charges relate to wire fraud, money laundering, and bribery. None of the indictments to date alleges terrorism financing.
The Department of Justice detailed the original charges in a 2022 indictment. Later filings show several defendants receiving long prison sentences. A key organiser received a 28-year sentence in a landmark case, while another defendant received 10 years.
Last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said his department had opened an investigation into whether any Minnesota welfare or social-services funds were diverted to al-Shabaab.
He said investigators are tracking money that has gone overseas, “both to the Middle East and to Somalia to see what the uses of that have been,” in a separate CBS interview.
The probe follows pressure from Republican lawmakers and conservative media.
They have highlighted the scale of the fraud and the Somali background of many defendants to argue that U.S. tax dollars may have reached the militant group.
House oversight probe
The Republican-led House Oversight Committee has opened an inquiry into Democratic Governor Tim Walz’s handling of human-services programs.
It cites “widespread fraud in Minnesota’s social services systems” and accuses his administration of failing to act on warning signs.
In a letter to Walz last week, Chairman James Comer demanded documents and said millions of dollars had been “stolen” on the governor’s watch.
The committee’s announcement and Comer’s detailed letter placed Minnesota’s oversight systems under fresh scrutiny.
Bessent told “Face the Nation” that some of those charged in the Minnesota fraud schemes had donated to Walz, Omar, and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.
He said the Treasury is examining whether money flowing out of Minnesota ended up supporting terrorism.
Omar said she did not know what Bessent was referring to. She confirmed that her campaign had previously returned donations after defendants were charged.
She also noted that she was “one of the first” lawmakers to write to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, urging a probe into suspected fraud in the child nutrition program.
Omar stressed that if investigators do find a terrorism link, those responsible should be prosecuted.
“If money from U.S. tax dollars is being sent to help with terrorism in Somalia, we want to know,” she said. “And we want those people prosecuted. And we want to make sure that that doesn’t ever happen again.”
She pointed to years of fraud prosecutions and recent long prison sentences in the Feeding Our Future case. Any terror link would likely have surfaced by now through the FBI, federal prosecutors, and U.S. courts, she argued.
Bessent has said the Treasury probe forms part of a broader cleanup of pandemic-era relief programs. Those schemes saw hundreds of billions of dollars in suspected fraud nationwide.
Trump attacks Somalis
The policy and investigative fight comes against an increasingly heated political backdrop.
Trump has repeatedly portrayed Minnesota as a “hub of fraudulent money laundering activity.” He has also singled out Somali immigrants as “garbage” who “contribute nothing but complain.”
Omar, who was born in Somalia and arrived in the United States as a refugee, called the president’s language “disgusting” and “dehumanising.”
She warned that such rhetoric can encourage violence by supporters who take it as a signal.
“These are Americans that he is calling garbage,” she said, adding that she sees an “unhealthy and creepy obsession” with her and the wider Somali community.
Somali Americans in Minnesota say the fraud scandal has already intensified online abuse, threats, and fears of immigration sweeps. Many residents have no link to the schemes.
Minnesota hosts the largest Somali community in the United States. Tens of thousands of people of Somali descent live in the state, mostly in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area.
Census-based estimates show that a majority of Somali Minnesotans are U.S. citizens, either by birth or naturalisation. Most foreign-born Somalis in the state have also taken citizenship.
Omar said Somali Minnesotans are “also taxpayers” and victims of the fraud. Money intended to feed children and support low-income families was stolen from programmes serving the broader community, she said.
“We also could have benefited from the program and the money that was stolen,” she added. “We’re also, as Minnesotans, as taxpayers, distraught and angry about the fraud that has occurred.”
What happens next
The Feeding Our Future case remains active, with more than 70 people charged so far.
Dozens of convictions or guilty pleas have been recorded, according to federal authorities and court filings. Aimee Bock, the nonprofit’s founder, was convicted at trial earlier this year.
Prosecutors say defendants created fake meal sites, forged invoices and child lists, and used shell companies to move money.
State officials in Minnesota have argued they tried to suspend payments earlier. Court orders blocked those efforts before the FBI moved in.
So far, neither the Justice Department nor the FBI has alleged that any of the Minnesota fraud proceeds were channelled to al-Shabaab.
Treasury officials say they are tracking funds that went overseas, including to Somalia and the Middle East, to assess how they were used.
Treasury has not set a public deadline for its investigation into possible links to terrorism. The department can share findings with law enforcement if it uncovers evidence of criminal activity.
On Capitol Hill, the Oversight Committee’s inquiry into Walz’s administration includes requests for documents and other records from Minnesota’s human-services agencies. Lawmakers can hold hearings or seek further information as the probe develops.
Omar, who faces her own re-election fight next year, said she will continue to support fraud prosecutions and any credible terrorism investigation.
She also vowed to push back on efforts to paint Somali Americans as collectively responsible.
“We want accountability,” she said. “We just don’t want our community scapegoated for crimes that a few individuals committed.”
