These are the lifestyles of the rich and shameless.
The Somali fraudsters convicted in the Feeding Our Future scandal flaunted government-funded lifestyles and robust real estate portfolios with the millions of dollars they bilked from the federal government.
Brazen scammers stole hundreds of millions of dollars of federal COVID relief funds — spending their loot on tony condos, expensive cars, and real estate projects in Kenya — including a four-story apartment building and luxury resort, according to court documents.
Minny insiders marveled this week to The Post at their sheer chutzpah.
Liban Yasin Alishire, 43, who pleaded guilty in 2023 to wire fraud and money laundering, spent $350,000 from his pilfered payouts on a luxury resort.
The lush Karibu Palms Resort, nestled on the southeastern border of Kenya along the Indian Ocean, just a stone’s throw from the white sands of Diani beach and local shopping malls, boasts multiple two-bedroom fully furnished cottages for larger parties, as well as studio apartments. Guests are even able to hire their own personal chef — for a fee.
Amenities at the resort included a swimming pool, high-speed WiFi Internet, Smart TV with YouTube and Netflix, and housekeeping services, according to the resort’s Facebook page.
A night in the “MY SUN V.I.P. Suite,” which features two king-sized beds, costs 20,000 Kenyan Shillings per night — approximately $155 USD a night, according to the hotel’s website.
Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, who was sentenced to 28 years in prison in 2024 and forced to pay nearly $40 million in restitution, became a real estate mover-and-shaker with his fraudulently obtained government dough.
Farah, 36, who deceitfully claimed to have served 18 million meals to needy children at over 30 sites across the Land of 10,000 Lakes, built Capital View Apartments, a luxury four-story apartment building in Nairobi for $1 million USD, along with other investors.
The complex contains three and four-bedroom apartments, a gym, and “ample parking,” according to its website.
“Somali people have money, these people have money,” said a stunned TikToker in Kenya after surveying several apartment buildings apparently being constructed by Somalis in downtown Nairobi, according to a recently viral X Post.
“Somali people tell me your secret!” he pleaded.
Aimee Bock, who prosecutors said masterminded the fraud operation, was a sugar mama to her former boyfriend, Empress Malcolm Watson Jr., paying him a $1 million salary as part of a phony contract and spending lavishly while bamboozling the public money.
The couple rented Lamborghinis, Rolls Royce’s, and other exotic cars luxury cars for $2,000 per day, on their trips, according to court documents.
They also routinely took lavish vacations to Las Vegas and Graceland, with Watson Jr. flaunting his stolen wealth on social media.
“I was always taught if you hang around 9 broke m-ther f–ka, you’re bound to be the 10th,” Watson’s Instagram bio reads.
Watson, who was not charged as part of the scam, was accused of spending $680,000 on jewelry, cars and other luxury items.
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Ayan Jama, who was convicted in Feb. 2025 for fraudulently claiming she served 1.7 million meals at her Brava restaurant, was paid over $5 million in funds and spent part of her loot on a $365,000 apartment in Turkey off the Mediterranean coast.
More than $250 million was stolen by Minnesotans, most of Somali descent, in the Feeding Our Futures scandal with the non-profit obtaining millions in federal Child Nutrition funds and distributing them to shell companies — duping the government into believing they were distributing food to underprivileged children, according to the US Department of Justice.
The shocking abuse of government funding in Minnesota is rampant, with Attorney Joe Thompson estimating that there could be as much as $9 billion in social services scams, with much appearing to be coming from the state’s Somali community.
