‘Feeding Our Future’ suspect charged in $4.6M daycare fraud after viral video
DHS ramps up investigation into Minnesota fraud following viral video
Fox News correspondent Garrett Tenney and Fox News contributor Hugh Hewitt join ‘America’s Newsroom’ to discuss the allegations of mass fraud in Minnesota daycare centers following a viral video from YouTuber and independent journalist Nick Shirley, which sparked backlash against the seemingly empty daycare centers.
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A woman allegedly tied to Minnesota’s massive “Feeding Our Future” scandal has been charged in a daycare fraud scheme after being featured in a viral video by influencer Nick Shirley, authorities said.
She is accused of pocketing millions of dollars meant for children’s meals.
Fahima Egeh Mahamud was charged Wednesday with wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States, according to court documents.
STATE OFFICIALS AND DAYCARE MANAGER PUSH BACK ON VIRAL VIDEO FRAUD ALLEGATIONS IN MINNESOTA

Fahima Egeh Mahamud, left, is the owner of a daycare that was featured in a viral video by Nick Shirley. On Wednesday, she was charged in another fraud case in Minnesota. (Getty Images; Hennepin County jail)
Earlier this year, Mahamud was indicted for her alleged role in the initial $250 million “Feeding Our Future” scheme. Prosecutors allege she enrolled Future Leaders Early Learning — a Minneapolis daycare where she served as CEO — into the federal child nutrition program, falsely claiming to serve thousands of meals at her childcare center.
In addition to her involvement in the nutrition program fraud, Mahamud was federally charged Wednesday with a secondary scheme to defraud the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), which provides daycare assistance to low-income families.
Between October 2022 and December 2025, she allegedly submitted over 13,000 fraudulent claims to CCAP totaling approximately $4.6 million. Prosecutors state the claims were fraudulent because she falsely certified that she had collected mandatory co-payments from families, which is a material requirement for federal reimbursement.
ILHAN OMAR PRESSED TO EXPLAIN HOW FRAUD IN MINNESOTA GOT ‘SO OUT OF CONTROL’
The Future Leaders Early Learning center was featured in Shirley’s viral video, FOX 9 Minneapolis reported, which showed him visiting apparently empty, Somali-run childcare centers in and around Minneapolis while alleging widespread fraud.
The video served as a catalyst for an immediate and aggressive multiagency crackdown by the Trump administration.
Following its release, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) froze roughly $185 million in federal childcare funding to Minnesota.
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Additionally, over 2,000 federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) were deployed to the Twin Cities to escalate investigations and enforcement.
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