Abdikerm Abdelahi Eidleh, a prominent defendant in the Feeding Our Future fraud case, was arrested in Mogadishu, Somalia, after spending more than four years outside the reach of US prosecutors, according to federal officials.
Eidleh, 42, was taken into custody during a daytime operation coordinated by the FBI and Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency. US authorities announced the arrest the following day. Officials did not disclose how investigators located him or provide details about arrangements for his transfer to the United States. [Sources 13961, 13963]
Federal prosecutors describe Eidleh as a leading participant in a scheme that exploited a child-nutrition program during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program supplied federal funding intended to provide meals to children in need, with the Minnesota nonprofit Feeding Our Future serving as a conduit for reimbursements. Authorities say the wider fraud involved approximately $250 million. [Sources 13961, 13962]
Eidleh was indicted in September 2022 on charges connected to wire fraud, federal programs bribery, money laundering and conspiracy. Prosecutors allege that he recruited restaurants and catering companies, directed businesses to inflate reimbursement claims and collected bribes and kickbacks. They also accuse him of establishing meal sites under other people’s names and using purported suppliers to bill for food that was not delivered. The allegations against him have not yet been adjudicated. [Sources 13961, 13963]
US Attorney for Minnesota Daniel Rosen characterized Eidleh as a key organizer who worked beneath Feeding Our Future founder Aimee Bock. Bock was convicted in the case and later sentenced to more than 40 years in prison. Rosen told CBS News that investigators believe Eidleh personally received $5 million through bribes and kickbacks. [Source 13963]
The arrest extends an investigation that has produced charges against dozens of defendants. CBS News reported that prosecutors had charged 79 people in the Feeding Our Future case and that 66 had either been convicted or pleaded guilty by the time of Eidleh’s capture. [Source 13963]
Christopher Dotson, the FBI special agent in charge in Minneapolis, said the operation demonstrated the international reach of US law enforcement. Al Jazeera reported that Somali authorities had not publicly commented on the arrest, although the US Department of Justice credited cooperation between the two countries’ agencies. [Sources 13961, 13963]
Eidleh’s capture brings a long-running fugitive into custody but does not resolve the criminal case against him. The charges remain accusations, and prosecutors will still need to establish their claims through the judicial process. Neither the supplied reports nor the cited official comments identified a timetable for his appearance in a US court.
