A 71st defendant has been caught in the tangled web of the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme, as Hibo Daar was intercepted by federal agents at the airport with a one-way ticket to Dubai in hand. The 50-year-old, who masterminded operations at the Northside Wellness Center, stands accused of fabricating meal counts and swindling over $1.7 million in federal funds meant to nourish children. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Daar purported to serve an inflated number of child meals, claiming up to 40,000 weekly, an operation that seems virtually implausible for a modest business park location on Hennepin Avenue in Minneapolis.
At the heart of the allegations, which were detailed by official court documents, sits Daar's alleged scheme. Court records paint a picture of deception where Daar submitted falsified meal count forms and bolstered her claims with counterfeit invoices and attendance rosters. Over $2.4 million was billed for reimbursement, with a substantial portion of these taxpayer dollars ending up in personal bank accounts belonging to Daar, her family, and associates; a mere fraction was actually spent on food. Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick vowed to continue this battle against fraud, asserting, "Our work is not done."
The sting operation carried out this week halted Daar just shy of escaping overseas as federal agents scooped her right before her departure from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The FBI, alongside IRS-Criminal Investigations and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, spearheaded the investigation. With Daar now in custody, she awaits the outcome of a detention hearing that could cement her fate concerning these allegations, which are detailed extensively in federal charging documents.
Emphasizing the gravity of the crime, Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of the FBI Minneapolis highlighted the broader implications for public trust, "Fraud against the government takes money out of taxpayers' pockets," Winston declared. The indictment, which still presumes Daar innocent until proven guilty, signifies just a chapter in a convoluted tale of duplicity that exploited a pandemic-era child nutrition program. The case remains under the rigorous scrutiny of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph H. Thompson, Matthew S. Ebert, Harry M. Jacobs, and Daniel W. Bobier.
