The mastermind of a $250 million Somali-linked fraud in Minnesota gave a self-pitying interview on the eve of being sentenced.
Aimee Bock, 45, was convicted last March of multiple counts involving conspiracy, wire fraud and bribery for her role in the Feeding Our Future scam, which prosecutors called America's largest Covid-era fraud.
Feeding Our Future received about $250 million in federal funds while falsely claiming to be serving 91 million meals for hungry children, prosecutors said.
Instead, the money was used to fund lavish lifestyles, including Bock's. Dozens of people, many in Minnesota's large Somali community, have been convicted for their roles in a series of overlapping food fraud cases.
Prosecutors want Bock jailed for up to 50 years for her part in the fraud, while her lawyer has argued for time served or a maximum of three years in prison. She will be sentenced on Thursday.
'I can promise you there's probably no one that's more angry and upset and hurt that fraud occurred within this program than I am,' she told KSTP in a jailhouse interview on Wednesday.
Bock insisted she did not 'intentionally, knowingly allow fraud to happen' within Feeding Our Future.
'Unfortunately, I trusted people that were not trustworthy,' Bock told the outlet. 'I believed people when I shouldn't have, and for that, I am responsible.'
Aimee Bock, 45, is facing up to 50 years in jail after being convicted of masterminding the US' largest Covid–era scam by lining her pockets with funds meant to feed needy kids
Bock is one of 79 people who were charged in connection with the Feeding Our Future case.
Minnesota US Attorney Daniel Rosen has pushed for Bock to spend 50 years in prison, as that 'appropriately reflects the seriousness of [her] crimes.'
'The brazen and staggering nature of her crimes has shaken Minnesota to its core, leaving lasting damage and eroding public trust,' Rosen said.
'Her actions have permanently altered the state, and not for the better,' he added.
Bock addressed that potential sentence in her jailhouse interview.
'It's shocking, it's disappointing,' she said. 'It is hurtful.'
When asked if she would speak at her sentencing if given the chance, Bock said she did not know if she would receive the opportunity but would 'absolutely' make some remarks.
'This is such a complicated situation, much more so than I think has been shared,' she said. 'There's so many more layers to it than what the public has heard.'
Bock's attorney Kenneth Udoibok has asked for a sentence of 37 months
Bock was convicted last March of multiple counts involving conspiracy, wire fraud and bribery for her role in the Feeding Our Future scam
Bock was asked whether understood that her answers made it seem like she was not accepting fault.
'Yes and no,' she replied.
Bock said she did not 'want to shift the blame' but said she did not know the checks submitted were fraudulent.
Bock claimed all the checks had been 'deemed valid when we submitted it.'
'We missed that,' she said. 'Under my leadership, that was missed.'
She added: 'I accept responsibility and blame for that. It was never intentional.'
Bock's ritzy expenses with the misappropriated money allegedly included spending $600,000 of taxpayer cash on treats while spending time with her then-boyfriend, a 41-year-old man called Empress Malcolm Watson Jr, according to a search warrant filed in the US District Court for Minnesota viewed by the Daily Mail.
The money came from the Federal Child Nutrition Program and went towards a no-expense spared trip to Las Vegas, where Bock splashed $21,000 at luxury car rental agency Royalty Exotic, $9,000 at Caesar's Palace, $6,700 at Gucci and $3,500 at Louis Vuitton, per the filing.
Bock allegedly spent thousands of dollars on ritzy vacations with her then-boyfriend, 41-year-old Empress Malcom Watson Jr
Bock as seen in her mugshot. She told the court she was unaware of the massive fraud
Additionally, she withdrew $184,000 in cash from the federal funds and transferred roughly $113,000 to Watson's account, according to court documents.
Watson has not been charged over the Feeding our Future fraud, but faces separate counts related to tax evasion.
Prosecutors slammed Bock over the 'brazen and staggering' scheme, which is one of multiple industrial-scale frauds recently unearthed in Minnesota.
Her attorney, Kenneth Udoibok, has recommended a sentence of 37 months, arguing that she did not receive credit from the government for documents that were used in criminal cases against some of co-conspirators, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune.
'This is a case in which the Court must sentence Ms. Bock based on what was proven against her, not on the sheer size of the broader public controversy, not on the conduct of every site operator and vendor who passed through the program,' Udoibok wrote, per the outlet.
Bock told the court that she 'didn't have a clue' about the scam, but prosecutors shot back that her 'willful blindness' was not an excuse for her crimes.