**Feds Charge 5, Including Man Acquitted at Trial, with Bribery of Minnesota Juror**
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — In a dramatic turn of events, five individuals have been charged with conspiring to bribe a Minnesota juror with $120,000 in cash. This bribe was intended to secure the acquittal of defendants involved in one of the largest COVID-19-related fraud cases in the United States. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI made the announcement on Wednesday.
Court documents reveal an elaborate scheme where the accused meticulously researched the juror’s personal information on social media, surveilled her, tracked her daily habits, and even purchased a GPS device to install on her car. Authorities believe the defendants targeted the woman, referred to as “Juror 52,” because she was the youngest and perceived to be the only person of color on the panel.
The group devised a “blueprint” of arguments for the juror to use in persuading other jurors to acquit, suggesting that the prosecution was racially motivated. The proposed arguments included statements like, “(w)e are immigrants, they don’t respect us.”
The juror reported the bribery attempt and was removed from the case before deliberations began. This incident has brought renewed attention to the trial of seven Minnesota defendants accused of orchestrating the theft of over $40 million from a federal program intended to feed children during the coronavirus pandemic. Authorities estimate that more than $250 million in federal funds were stolen in the scheme, with only about $50 million recovered so far.
The individuals charged are Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, Said Shafii Farah, Abdulkarim Shafii Farah, and Ladan Mohamed Ali. Each faces one count of conspiracy to bribe a juror, one count of bribery of a juror, and one count of corruptly influencing a juror. Additionally, Abdiaziz Shafii Farah is charged with one count of obstruction of justice.
Abdiaziz Shafii Farah and Abdimajid Mohamed Nur were among five convicted in the fraud trial earlier this month, while Said Shafii Farah was acquitted. Abdulkarim Shafii Farah and Ladan Mohamed Ali were not involved in the initial trial.
Investigators spent three weeks sifting through extensive evidence to uncover the plot, which U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger described as “something out of a mob movie.” The five individuals charged attempted to secure an acquittal not based on evidence but through an elaborate scheme to infiltrate the jury.
According to the indictment, the plan was conceived in mid-May. Ali, accused of delivering the bribe money to the juror’s home, flew from Seattle to Minneapolis on May 17 to meet with Nur. She allegedly agreed to deliver the bribe money to the home of “Juror #52” in exchange for $150,000. Ali returned to Minneapolis two weeks later on May 30 and attempted to follow the woman home as she left a parking ramp near the courthouse.
On June 2, Abdiaziz Farah instructed Nur to meet at Said Farah’s business to pick up the bribe money. When Nur arrived, Said Farah handed him a cardboard box containing the money and advised him to “be safe.” Nur then gave the money to Ali after picking her up in a parking lot later that day. Hours later, Ali and Abdulkarim Farah drove to a Target store, purchased a screwdriver, and removed the license plates from Ali’s rental car before driving to the juror’s home.
As Farah stayed in the car and filmed the encounter, Ali knocked on the door and was greeted by a relative of the juror. Ali handed over the gift bag and explained that there would be more money if the juror voted to acquit. The juror called the police after she got home and handed over the bag, which contained stacks of $100, $50, and $20 bills totaling around $120,000.
The woman who left the bag knew the juror’s first name. Names of the jurors have not been made public, but the list of people with access to them included prosecutors, defense lawyers, and the seven defendants. On June 3, after the bribe attempt was reported, U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel ordered all seven defendants to surrender their phones. Abdiaziz Farah conducted a factory reset of his iPhone to delete all messages and photos detailing the plot.
Two days later, FBI agents executed a search warrant on Abdiaziz Farah’s home and found a typed list of the jurors hidden inside a plastic water bottle. Abdiaziz Farah, Said Farah, and Abdulkarim Farah made their initial appearances in federal court on Wednesday afternoon. A defense attorney representing them declined to comment afterward.
All three men requested representation from the Office of the Federal Defender, a request prosecutors objected to, citing the defendants’ alleged access to money parked abroad. Prosecutors claimed that Abdiaziz Farah sent millions in stolen money to Kenya and elsewhere in East Africa, which was used to purchase and construct a 12-story apartment building in Nairobi.
Magistrate Judge Douglas L. Micko temporarily allowed the defendants their requested representation and scheduled an arraignment and detention hearing for July 1. Prosecutors said Ali would make her initial court appearance on Thursday.
Seventy people have been charged in federal court for their alleged roles in the pandemic-related fraud scheme centered on a nonprofit called Feeding Our Future. In addition to the five convictions in early June, eighteen other defendants have already pleaded guilty. Trials are still pending for the others.
Federal prosecutors say the conspiracy exploited lax rules designed to prevent the economy from crashing during the pandemic. The FBI began investigating in the spring of 2021. The defendants allegedly produced invoices for meals never served, ran shell companies, laundered money, engaged in passport fraud, and accepted kickbacks.
The money came from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was administered by the state, which funneled the funds through partners including Feeding Our Future. The Minnesota Legislature’s watchdog arm found that the state education department provided inadequate oversight of the federal program, which opened the door to the theft.
Luger, who previously worked as a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn when the U.S. Attorney’s Office was dismantling the Mafia’s “Five Families,” said that form of corruption had made its way to Minnesota. This episode could change how federal prosecutors approach jury trials as they explore new ways to guard against legal interference.
Source: Associated Press
