Business records reviewed by The Daily Wire show Sahra Noor incorporated Grit Partners Consulting at a Minnesota residence associated with several people and entities connected to the $240 million Feeding Our Future fraud, though neither Noor nor her company has been charged in the case.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
A consulting company founded by Rep. Ilhan Omar’s sister was registered at the same Minnesota home address used by businesses connected through public records to several central figures in the Feeding Our Future fraud case, according to an investigation by The Daily Wire.
Sahra Noor incorporated Grit Partners Consulting, a health and leadership consultancy focused largely on projects in Africa, at a residence on Hyacinth Way in Lakeville. Her company’s website states that she has “secured more than $20 million in funding for health initiatives” and worked on projects supported by organizations that include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USAID, GAVI and the World Bank.
The claim does not mean Grit Partners itself received $20 million from USAID. Rather, Noor’s website says she helped obtain more than $20 million for health initiatives while consulting on projects backed by several agencies and organizations, including USAID.
The questions surrounding Grit Partners arise from the company’s incorporation address and the business history tied to the people who reportedly own the property.
The Hyacinth Way home belongs to Mashah Ahmed Ali and his wife, Ister Ahmed Afraa, also known as Ismahan Afraah, according to The Daily Wire. Afraa’s business records connect her to multiple people and organizations involved in the Feeding Our Future scheme.
Afraa formed Sunrise Business Center with Hanna Marekegn, who later pleaded guilty to participating in the fraud operation. Marekegn admitted helping obtain millions of dollars by falsely claiming that meals had been provided to thousands of children.
She also acknowledged that accusations of racism were used to pressure Minnesota officials when they questioned the meal program’s suspicious participation figures.
Afraa separately incorporated Sunshine Care Center MN, the report said. State health records reportedly identified Feeding Our Future founder Aimee Bock as the contact person for that organization.
Bock was sentenced in May to 500 months, or more than 41 years, in federal prison for directing the scheme. The Justice Department said Feeding Our Future fraudulently obtained and distributed more than $240 million through more than 250 purported meal sites.
The Hyacinth Way property also appeared as the registered address for Diversity Childcare Center LLC, with Afraa named as its manager in Minnesota business records. Bock was also listed as a contact for that operation, according to The Daily Wire.
Another person associated with Afraa was Sahra Mohamed Nur, who is not the same person as Omar’s sister, Sahra Noor.
Nur pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering and was sentenced to 51 months in prison. She was also ordered to pay more than $5 million in restitution.
Through S & S Catering, Nur claimed to have distributed more than 8 million meals under the federal nutrition program. The Justice Department said the company received more than $16 million in Feeding Our Future reimbursements based on fraudulent representations.
Afraa reportedly operated a company from Nur’s residence, and the two women were connected to similarly named real estate companies.
When contacted by The Daily Wire, Ali said he did not recognize the companies registered at his home or the businesses associated with his wife.
“There must be some sort of scam going on, I have no idea,” Ali told the outlet.
Ali declined to provide his wife’s contact information, according to the report. Afraa and Noor did not respond to requests for comment.
The shared address and overlapping business records do not establish that Noor or Grit Partners participated in the Feeding Our Future fraud. Neither Noor nor her consulting company has been publicly charged or accused by prosecutors of taking part in the scheme.
The findings nevertheless add to scrutiny surrounding Omar’s connections to people and organizations that appeared in the investigation.
Omar’s name surfaced in exhibits introduced during Bock’s criminal case, including an email thread titled “Ilhan’s Office.” Another email reportedly used the subject line “help with USDA food program,” and investigators recovered text messages between Omar and Bock during a search of Bock’s residence.
Omar also promoted the federal meal program at Safari Restaurant, which became one of the scheme’s major fraudulent meal sites. Her campaign received donations from several people later charged in the Feeding Our Future case.
The Minnesota House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Committee invited Omar to testify and asked her to turn over communications involving Bock, Safari Restaurant employees, former Omar staff member Guhaad Hashi Said and multiple Feeding Our Future defendants.
Omar did not appear or produce the requested records by the committee’s May 5 deadline.
Minnesota House Democrats subsequently opposed an effort to subpoena her. The motion received five Republican votes but fell one vote short of the six required for approval. The Minnesota House’s official account showed that all three Democrats present voted against issuing the subpoena.
Omar has denied knowing about the fraud.
“Any claim that I had knowledge of this scheme is flat-out false,” Omar said in May.
She has defended the bipartisan MEALS Act, which she introduced during the pandemic, and said she welcomed the prosecution of Bock and others responsible for stealing federal funds intended to feed children.
The newly reported address connection does not prove criminal conduct by Omar, Noor or Grit Partners. It does, however, place Noor’s company registration at a property repeatedly associated in public records with businesses and individuals tied to the largest fraud case in Minnesota history.
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