The former leader of a Minnesota nonprofit has been sentenced to nearly 42 years in prison for her role in a staggering $250 million fraud case. Aimee Bock ran Feeding Our Future, which had claimed it provided millions of meals to children in need during the pandemic. She appeared Thursday in Minneapolis federal court. Her lawyer had argued for a sentence of no more than three years, saying she had been unfairly painted as the mastermind. Authorities later announced charges against 15 more people accused of fraud in receiving federal payments for a variety of social services in Minnesota.
{US prosecutors drop fraud charges against billionaire Indian businessman Gautam Adani} (CORRECTS: A previous APNewsAlert erroneously spelled Adani's last name.}).
A judge has ruled that a Utah mother who wrote a children’s book about grief after her husband’s death will serve life in prison without parole for his murder. Kouri Richins was convicted in March of poisoning her husband, Eric, with fentanyl in 2022. A jury also found her guilty of insurance fraud, forgery, and attempted murder for a previous poisoning attempt. Prosecutors said she was in debt and had taken out life insurance policies on her husband. Her sons, now in the care of relatives, expressed fear of her release. Richins maintains her innocence and plans to appeal the conviction.
The leader of the Southern Poverty Law Center has pleaded not guilty on behalf of the organization to charges that the civil rights group has defrauded donors by failing to disclose that money would be paid to informants inside extremist groups. The group’s interim president and CEO, Bryan Fair, appeared Thursday in federal court in Montgomery. A grand jury indictment was filed April 21 by the U.S. Justice Department. The charges are an extraordinary strike against the organization, which works to combat discrimination and racism particularly in the Deep South. The SPLC has denied wrongdoing. No individuals are charged in the case.
U.S. prosecutors allege a man with multiple aliases used the name of the famed Astor family to scam a Mexican billionaire out of $450 million. According to a New York federal grand jury indictment unsealed Monday, Vladimir Sklarov set up a fake company called Astor Asset Group and claimed it was linked to the wealthy New York Astor family to gain credibility. Sklarov was arrested in Chicago on Saturday. The alleged victim, Ricardo Salinas Pliego, confirmed he was a victim in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. The indictment alleges Sklarov illegally sold $450 million worth of corporate shares that Salinas had put up as collateral for a loan. A lawyer for Sklarov did not immediately return messages.
Hoax calls involving alleged bomb threats and even claims of active shooters have prompted evacuations and closures at several zoos around the U.S. in recent days. No explosives or real dangers have been found in the latest string of what authorities are describing as “swatting” incidents. In the latest case, police on Sunday swept the Akron Zoo in Ohio after a threat led to the evacuation of visitors. Threats also have been called in to zoos elsewhere in Ohio, as well as in Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida and Arizona. The FBI has called swatting an increasing national problem.
The Onion's plan to transform Alex Jones' Infowars platforms into parody sites are in limbo again. New legal filings by Jones led a Texas appeals court to pause a proposed deal that would give the satirical news outlet control over Infowars as it faces liquidation. The brand's assets are expected to be sold off due to over $1 billion in defamation lawsuit judgments Jones owes to relatives of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting for calling the Connecticut massacre a hoax. A judge had scheduled a hearing Thursday on whether to approve The Onion's takeover, but it was scuttled because of the appeals court ruling.
Illinois taxpayers were ripped off for hundreds of thousands of dollars by state government employees who defrauded the federal government Pay…
Illinois taxpayers were ripped off for hundreds of thousands of dollars by state government employees who defrauded the federal government Paycheck Protection (PPP) loan program.
