Said Abdullahi Ereg surrendered in Minneapolis after being listed in connection with allegations involving more than $4 million intended for federally funded child nutrition programs.
WASHINGTON, DC, October 5, 2026
Said Abdullahi Ereg surrendered to FBI agents at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on June 10, becoming the first person taken into custody from the bureau’s newly launched Most Wanted Fraudsters list, federal authorities said.
The FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters list is a specialized fugitive list launched in June 2026. Created in partnership with a White House task force, it aims to enlist public assistance to track down individuals wanted for multi-million-dollar high-impact schemes, including Medicare fraud, COVID-19 relief/PPP theft, mortgage fraud, and SNAP benefit fraud.
His return followed allegations that a Minneapolis grocery business obtained millions of dollars through fraudulent child nutrition claims during the COVID-19 pandemic, when federal funding was intended to support meals for children in need.
The Justice Department’s surrender announcement states that Ereg communicated through his attorney on June 5 that he wanted to return to the United States, one day after the FBI publicly identified him on the new list.
Attorney Contact Preceded Airport Surrender
Federal authorities described Ereg’s surrender as peaceful and said he had been living overseas, with his precise whereabouts unknown, after an arrest warrant was issued in connection with the pending criminal charges against him.
The sequence provides a documented connection between the list’s launch and contact from his lawyer, although the announcement does not establish that publicity alone caused his decision or describe every discussion preceding his return.
The Justice Department’s account identifies a surrender arranged through counsel and completed at an American airport, without describing a foreign arrest, an extradition ruling or a contested proceeding to secure his transfer from another country.
Grocery Business Allegedly Claimed More Than 1.4 Million Meals
Ereg operated Evergreen Grocery and Deli in Minneapolis, a business prosecutors say participated in the federal child nutrition program under the sponsorship of Feeding Our Future, the nonprofit at the center of the broader fraud prosecution.
According to KSTP’s reporting on the surrender, prosecutors alleged the business fraudulently claimed to have served more than 1.4 million meals and received over $4.2 million, tying the accusations to a specific operation and payment history.
A separate Justice Department account concerning Ereg’s wife, Najmo Ahmed, states that Evergreen enrolled in April 2020 and submitted claims for those meals between April 2020 and April 2021, during the pandemic’s first year.
That account describes falsified meal-count records and transfers from business accounts into personal accounts, allegations that connect the reimbursement claims with the subsequent movement of funds rather than simply questioning the number of meals reported.
Payments and Personal Proceeds Require Careful Distinction
The more than $4.2 million figure describes payments prosecutors attributed to Evergreen’s fraudulent claims, and it should not automatically be presented as a final court determination of Ereg’s personal profit, recoverable assets or restitution obligation.
The broader Feeding Our Future prosecution encompasses other defendants and organizations, so it is equally necessary to distinguish allegations concerning Evergreen from amounts associated with the overall investigation or other separately charged participants.
Ahmed pleaded guilty to money laundering in February 2025, according to the Justice Department, but her plea does not itself establish Ereg’s guilt, and the allegations against him require their own resolution through the criminal process.
First Custody Announcement for the New List
The FBI described Ereg’s surrender as the first arrest associated with its Most Wanted Fraudsters initiative, which had launched six days earlier, giving the bureau an early result to announce in its effort to locate financial crime defendants.
That milestone concerns the sequence of apprehensions associated with the initiative, while the underlying prosecution began in 2024, showing the public listing followed an existing criminal case and outstanding arrest warrant.
The surrender announcement identified conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering charges, but it did not announce a guilty plea, trial verdict or sentence resolving those accusations against Ereg at that time.
Cross-Border Planning and Pending Proceedings
For readers researching lawful international relocation, Amicus International Consulting provides information about second-passport services, a separate planning topic that does not establish how an outstanding criminal case will be resolved or substitute for advice from defense counsel.
For individuals considering legitimate international relocation, Amicus International Consulting publishes information about second-passport services, a planning subject that requires its own assessment and should not be interpreted as advice on resolving Ereg’s pending criminal allegations.
Its information about tax identification numbers concerns administrative documentation, and the sources reviewed provide no evidence connecting those services or the company with Ereg, Evergreen Grocery and Deli, or the arrangements surrounding his surrender.
Surrender Brought the Defendant Before Authorities
Ereg’s return marked a concrete development in the Minnesota prosecution by bringing him into federal custody, while leaving the central questions concerning fraudulent claims, financial transactions, and individual criminal responsibility to be addressed through subsequent court proceedings.
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