DOJ Seeks To Strip Citizenship From 'Feeding Our Future' Fraud Defendant

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking to revoke the citizenship of a man tied to the massive Feeding Our Future fraud case.

Federal prosecutors filed a civil complaint in U.S. District Court in Minnesota seeking to revoke the naturalized U.S. citizenship of Abdikadir Ali Kadiye, also known as Liban M. Degel.

Kadiye, who resides in Plymouth, is one of 17 naturalized U.S. citizens targeted in denaturalization actions announced Monday by the DOJ.

The department said the cases involve people accused of serious offenses, including sexual abuse of a minor, wire and bank fraud, and distributing drugs wholesale without a license.

Under federal law, naturalized citizenship can be revoked if it was illegally procured or obtained by concealment of a material fact or willful misrepresentation, according to the DOJ.

In a complaint, federal prosecutors allege Kadiye "procured his naturalization unlawfully" and "willfully misrepresented and concealed material facts in applying to naturalize."

The complaint says Kadiye initially sought admission to the United States in April 1997 under the identity Liban M. Degel. Prosecutors said an immigration judge later denied his application for immigration benefits under that identity and ordered him removed to Somalia.

Federal prosecutors allege Kadiye later applied for immigration benefits under the identity Abdikadir Ali Kadiye while still in removal proceedings under the Degel identity.

Kadiye became a naturalized U.S. citizen on Sept. 6, 2012, according to the complaint.

The DOJ is asking the court to revoke and set aside the order admitting him to U.S. citizenship and cancel his certificate of naturalization.

Kadiye was previously charged in the Feeding Our Future investigation, one of the largest pandemic-era fraud cases in the country.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota, Kadiye was the president of Hobyo Health Care Foundation. Prosecutors said he falsely claimed to serve more than 445,000 meals to children at sites in Minnetonka, Eden Prairie and Minneapolis.

In total, prosecutors said Kadiye submitted more than $1.1 million in fraudulent claims for federal child nutrition program funds. Authorities said some of the money was spent on vehicles, including a $105,000 2022 BMW SUV, airline tickets, real estate, and $20,000 toward the purchase of a laundromat.