Minneapolis Grocery Owner Surrenders After Being Named on FBI Most Wanted Fraudsters List

Said Abdullahi Ereg, 47, surrendered to federal authorities on Wednesday, becoming the first person taken into custody from the FBI’s newly created “Most Wanted Fraudsters” list. Ereg, a former south Minneapolis grocery and deli owner, faces charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. Federal officials said he has been wanted on those charges since 2024.

2 million from the Federal Child Nutrition Program during the COVID-19 pandemic. He operated Evergreen Grocery and Deli under the sponsorship of the nonprofit Feeding Our Future. Court documents state that Evergreen Grocery and Deli claimed to have served more than 3,000 meals twice daily, seven days a week.

Prosecutors allege the claims were false and that proceeds were laundered through foreign accounts. Ereg surrendered less than a week after the Justice Department unveiled the “Most Wanted Fraudsters” list. Federal officials said he contacted authorities through his attorney one day after the list was released and expressed a willingness to return to the United States.

FBI Director Kash Patel announced the arrest. “Today’s arrest is historic – the first ever arrest of a subject on our Most Wanted Fraudsters List released last week with the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud,” Patel said in a statement. ” Ereg’s wife, Najmo Ahmed, worked at Evergreen Grocery and Deli and received payroll payments directly from Feeding Our Future.

She pleaded guilty last year to money laundering charges and is scheduled to be sentenced later this month. The arrest follows the Justice Department’s earlier creation of a National Fraud Enforcement Division to support President Donald Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, led by Vice President JD Vance.