Minneapolis Daycare Owner Charged With $4.6 Million Childcare Aid Fraud

A Minneapolis daycare owner has been charged with defrauding federal assistance programs meant to help children and low-income families, according to federal prosecutors. Fahima Egeh Mahamud, who served as CEO of Future Leaders Early Learning Center, faces charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States.

The new charges, unsealed Wednesday, allege Mahamud orchestrated a scheme to defraud the Child Care Assistance Program, or CCAP. Prosecutors say that between October 2022 and December 2025, she submitted approximately 13,000 fraudulent claims totaling about $4.6 million. The indictment states she falsely certified that she had collected mandatory copayments from families, a requirement for federal reimbursement.

These charges represent a second alleged fraud scheme connected to Mahamud. Earlier this year, she was indicted for her alleged role in the larger "Feeding Our Future" scandal. In that case, prosecutors allege she enrolled her daycare in a federal child nutrition program and falsely claimed to serve thousands of meals to children. According to court documents, her center at one point claimed to serve 60,000 children monthly. Between January and July...