EXPLAINER: How alleged plot exploited pandemic to net $250M

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Department of Justice has charged 48 people in Minnesota in what prosecutors have called a $250 million scheme to defraud a federal meals program.

Prosecutors said just a fraction of the money went toward feeding kids, with the rest laundered through shell companies and spent on property, luxury cars and travel.

Here's a look at how the alleged scheme worked, according to court documents:

ROOTS OF THE ALLEGED SCHEME

The defendants are accused of targeting federal child nutrition programs that provide free meals to low-income children and adults. The money comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with oversight from state governments. In Minnesota, the funds are administered by the state Department of Education, with meals historically provided to kids through schools and day care centers. Sites that serve the food are sponsored by authorized public or nonprofit groups.

Some standard program requirements were relaxed during the COVID-19 pandemic; for-profit restaurants were allowed to participate, and food could be distributed outside educational programs.

Minnesota U.S. Attorney Andy Luger said Tuesday that a small group of people came up with a plan to exploit the relaxed rules and steal tens of millions of dollars by falsely claiming they were providing food to children.

Others soon joined, and the scheme grew to become what Luger called the largest pandemic-related fraud in the U.S.

HOW IT ALLEGEDLY WORKED

Several companies applied to provide meals to low-income children, many using Feeding Our Future as a sponsor to seek funding, according to court documents.

Authorities allege Feeding our Future employees recruited others to open program sites across Minnesota that inflated the number of children and meals they were serving, or...