We know what’s coming and we are prepared.
A jury found five defendants guilty and two not guilty on Friday in the first trial in the nation's largest pandemic relief fraud case.
They faced a total of 41 charges — chiefly wire fraud, bribery and money laundering - alleging they claimed to give away 18.8 million meals to needy children from 50 sites across the state.
Prosecutors said they fabricated invoices and submitted thousands of phony names of children in order to get $49 million in federal funds.
Said Shafii Farah and Abdiwahab Maalim Aftin were acquitted of all charges against them, while the others had a mix of convictions and acquittals.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson held a brief press conference and said, "We're pleased with the verdict. We're proud of the trial."
He said the outcome confirms what the feds knew all along: That members of the group falsified documents, lied and claimed to be serving millions of meals, taking advantage of a global pandemic to defraud the public and steal millions of dollars.
"This conduct was not just criminal, it was depraved and brazen," Thompson said. "Evidence showed how brazen the scheme was, and how
The verdict came at the end of a chaotic week, when the first day of jury deliberations was marked by chaos Monday, as federal prosecutors revealed that someone left $120,000 at the home of a juror Sunday night in an effort to sway her vote. The juror - and another juror who became aware of the bribe attempt - were dismissed, while the remaining jurors were sequestered and the defendants detained for the remainder of deliberations.
The home of one of the defendants, Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, whom prosecutors have described as a ringleader, was raided Wednesday in connection with the bribe investigation.
The defendants are the first to stand trial out of 70 people charged so far in what's been dubbed the Feeding Our Future case - named for a nonprofit at the center of the scheme — and which revolves around a web of people who federal prosecutors say stole some $250 million.
Eighteen people have pleaded guilty and one fled the country.
The verdict is sure to affect the 44 others awaiting trial. More could still be charged, especially if the guilty verdicts unleash a wave of cooperation with the investigation, as defendants and suspects seek lighter sentences. The two acquittals may give some the confidence to go to trial.
It's easy to mock this guy, laugh at him, say it's always Gingers etc.
However why are we not asking why, as a society, young men are making life choices like this?
Same as anyone who chooses to go against our natural order with how they live.
Something has gone badly wrong.
“Oregon is using satellites to hunt small farms.”
Farmer Justin Rhodes says the state redefined “CAFO” so even 3 cows and a milking stand count as a factory farm.
Cease-and-desist letters. $100K “upgrades.” Family farms shut down.
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“The fetal bovine serum is just disgusting, and it’s in almost every viral vaccine. They harvest it by inserting a needle into the beating heart of a baby cow to extract its blood. Where is PETA when you need them? The FDA even admits they use ‘cow parts’ because cows are large and have a lot to use.”
@NoAgendaLara
🌊🌎 Climate scientists’ controversial claim Gulf Stream could be near collapse — predicting a new ice age
A key Atlantic current could be pushed to the brink of collapse within decades, supposedly ushering in a new ice age and dramatically raising sea levels, climate scientists have claimed in a controversial new study published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment.
Per the new findings, the at-risk current in question is the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation or AMOC, a “conveyor belt of the ocean” that funnels warm water toward the ocean surface — from the tropics to the Northern Hemisphere.
This current, which includes the Gulf Stream that runs from the Gulf of Mexico to the US East Coast and across the Atlantic to Europe, helps maintain the mild climate of Europe, the UK, and the US East Coast.
The study stated that the source of this marine temperature regulator, the Greenland Ice sheet, is being thawed amid warming temperatures, causing ...
