The woman prosecutors described as the mastermind behind one of the biggest COVID-era fraud schemes in the country was sentenced Thursday to more than 41 years in federal prison.
Aimee Bock, 45, was convicted in March on multiple charges tied to the Feeding Our Future scandal in Minnesota, a sprawling scheme that siphoned roughly $250 million from a federal child nutrition program meant to feed low-income children during the pandemic.
Federal prosecutors said Bock’s nonprofit falsely claimed to have served 91 million meals to children across Minnesota while using taxpayer money to bankroll lavish spending, shell companies, and personal enrichment. Judge Nancy Brasel handed down a sentence of 500 months in prison, making clear she viewed Bock as the central figure in the operation.
“This was a vortex of fraud, and you were its epicenter,” Brasel told Bock during the sentencing hearing in Minneapolis. “A sentence of less than 500 months would not do justice to the people of Minnesota.”
The punishment far exceeded the 37-month sentence requested by Bock’s attorney, Kenneth Udoibok, who argued she was a “good person” who had trusted the wrong people and did not personally profit on the same scale as others involved.
Federal prosecutors strongly disagreed.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Kline called Bock “the leader of this entire scheme” and argued that permanently removing her ability to participate in public life was the only appropriate outcome. Prosecutors also accused Bock of repeatedly lying under oath during the investigation and trial.
The Feeding Our Future nonprofit operated as part of the Federal Child Nutrition Program, which expanded during the COVID pandemic as schools closed and food insecurity increased. Prosecutors said Bock and her network exploited relaxed oversight rules to funnel millions of dollars through fake meal distribution sites that claimed to feed thousands of children each day, almost immediately after opening.
According to investigators, many of those sites either served little food or did not exist at all.
Brasel rejected claims from Bock that the organization had still provided between $80 million and $132 million worth of meals. The court ultimately determined the fraud caused roughly $243 million in losses.
Before the sentence was announced, Bock tearfully addressed the court and apologized.
“I don’t have the words to express just how horrible I feel,” she said. “I know I’m responsible.”
Still, prosecutors said Bock continued minimizing her role even in the days leading up to sentencing. In a jailhouse interview with local outlet KSTP, Bock claimed she never intentionally allowed fraud to happen and blamed her downfall partly on trusting dishonest people.
“Under my leadership, that was missed,” she said. “It was never intentional.”
Investigators painted a far different picture during the case, describing a highly organized operation designed specifically to avoid scrutiny. Brasel said Bock created fake board meeting records and established internal procedures that helped conceal the fraud.
Court documents also detailed extravagant spending tied to the stolen money, including vacations and luxury expenses involving Bock’s former boyfriend, Empress Malcom Watson Jr. Authorities alleged roughly $600,000 in taxpayer funds were spent on entertainment and travel connected to the couple.
Watson was not charged in the Feeding Our Future case, though he later faced separate tax-related felony charges tied to allegedly unreported income.
The broader scandal has resulted in charges against dozens of defendants, many of whom have already pleaded guilty or been convicted. Federal officials have repeatedly described the scheme as the largest pandemic-related fraud case prosecuted in the United States. After completing her prison term, Bock will also serve three years of supervised release.
