A Somali daycare operator accused of siphoning millions in taxpayer dollars through fraudulent schemes in Minnesota has been arrested after she was caught attempting to flee the country.
Fahima Egeh Mahamud, the owner of Future Leaders Early Learning Center, was taken into custody after booking travel to the United Kingdom, according to court documents and local reports.
She is now the 79th defendant charged in connection with the sprawling Feeding Our Future fraud investigation.
Prosecutors say the fraud scheme stole hundreds of millions of dollars intended to feed and care for children.
In 2025 alone, Mahamud’s center reportedly received a staggering $3.67 million in Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) funding.
That followed an earlier windfall tied to the Feeding Our Future operation.
Between 2020 and 2021, the organization received more than $850,000 in federal child nutrition funds.
However, authorities found that the center only spent a fraction of the funds on actual food for children.
The rest of the money was used to fund the fraudsters’ lavish lifestyles.
Explosive Growth in Claims
According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Mahamud incorporated Future Leaders as a legal entity in March 2015 and initially participated in the Federal Child Nutrition Program under a different sponsor.
In September 2018, she signed paperwork transferring sponsorship to Feeding Our Future, the now-infamous nonprofit at the center of one of the largest pandemic-era fraud schemes in the country.
For the first few years, funding levels were described by an FBI special agent as “modest,” rarely exceeding $10,000.
That changed dramatically in late 2020.
By December 2020, the center’s claims surged.
Between January and June 2021, prosecutors allege Future Leaders claimed to be serving more than 1,000 children per day.
By February 2021, the center was reportedly claiming to serve nearly 60,000 meals per month.
Investigators say the financial paperwork does not match the scale of those claims.
The affidavit states that many invoices and receipts appear “inflated or fraudulent.”
Some invoices were tied to a vendor connected to a co-conspirator who has already pleaded guilty to wire fraud.
From December 2020 through July 2021, Future Leaders received more than $850,000 — but only about $125,000 was reportedly spent on food.
Forensic analysis cited in court documents alleges that significant sums were redirected elsewhere, including:
- $174,159 paid directly to Mahamud
- $726,566 used for real estate purchases
- $359,020 transferred to companies associated with Mahamud
Attempted Escape Flight
On February 10, 2026, Mahamud notified the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families that she was abruptly closing the center.
Days later, authorities say she booked a ticket to the United Kingdom, with a scheduled return date of February 20.
She was arrested before boarding the flight.
According to reports, Mahamud is scheduled to appear in federal court in St. Paul for a detention hearing.
Undercover Exposure
Citizen journalist Nick Shirley, whose undercover investigations brought national attention to empty “daycares” allegedly collecting millions in government funds, had prominently featured Future Leaders in a December 2025 exposé.
Following the arrest, Shirley wrote on X:
“UPDATE: Minnesota fraudster has been arrested before she tried to flee to the UK.
“Her daycare ‘Future Leaders Early Learning Center’ was involved in the Feeding Our Future scam and had received $3.67 million in CCAP funding in 2025.
“Goodbye fraudster, you will not be missed.”
Shirey included a short clip from his viral exposé which featured the center.
WATCH:
🚨 UPDATE: Minnesota fraudster has been arrested before she tried to flee to the UK
Her daycare “Future Leaders Early Learning Center” was involved in the Feeding Our Future scam and had received $3.67 million in CCAP funding in 2025
Goodbye fraudster, you will not be missed:) pic.twitter.com/zREQ78uJ5a
— Nick shirley (@nickshirleyy) February 19, 2026
The Feeding Our Future case has already resulted in dozens of indictments and guilty pleas, with prosecutors alleging a coordinated network that exploited pandemic-era federal programs.
With Mahamud’s arrest, investigators appear to be tightening the net around one of the largest public assistance fraud schemes in state history and sending a message that fleeing overseas will not shield defendants from accountability.
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