On February 24, 2021, a Wednesday, when the Daily Nation front page was about 38 county assemblies approving the Building Bridges Initiative bill, the Registrar of Companies in Nairobi allowed the formation of a firm called Capital View Properties Limited.
It looked like a regular company registration application. This was a firm with 1,000 ordinary shares, owned by five individuals who were both directors-cum-shareholders.
According to a search we conducted on January 7, the five are Zeitun Garat Abdinoor with 150 shares, Abdullahi Maalim Aftin (150), Abdiwahab Maalim Aftin (100), Abdifatah Maalim Aftin (500) and Abdigani Maalim Aftin (100).
The company’s registered office is in Nairobi’s South C, off Shapara Road. It has no encumbrances, meaning no loans have been taken in its name.
It didn’t take long for the back story of the company to come to the fore, as it would later feature in court proceedings in the United States for having received some of the nearly $300 million (Sh38.7 billion) stolen from American taxpayers in the name of feeding needy children during the Covid pandemic.
Abdiaziz is currently serving a 28-year prison term that will be followed by three years of supervised release.
Besides, the 36-year-old is required to pay the US government $47.9 million (Sh6.1 billion) in restitution.
That means that the US will seize whatever assets linked to him and deduct whatever wages he earns in prison until Sh6.1 billion is collected.
Information that the 36-year-old provided in the US in 2022 indicated that he was born in Mogadishu and that he became a naturalised US citizen in 2012.
In March 2022, which was months before his arrest, he had bought a one-way ticket to Nairobi, Kenya, using a passport he had obtained after lying to authorities that his first one – which had been confiscated by law enforcers – had got lost. He, however, did not use the ticket and continued staying in the US. By then, the Covid cash scandal was all over the news outlets.
On May 4, 2021, just three months after Capital View Properties was registered, he sent $204,795 (Sh26.4 million) to the company.
Then on May 11, 2021, he wired another $300,000 (Sh38.7 million) while on June 1, 2021, he sent another $206,428 (Sh26.6 million).
This brought the total sent from the US-based Abdiaziz to Capital View to $711,113 (Sh91.7 million).
“In addition to these transfers, Abdiaziz told Individual MI [one of his accomplices] that he has invested $6 million in Kenya over the past three years. During the search of Abdiaziz’s residence, agents recovered his cell phone. A search of his cell phone shows that Abdiaziz exchanged messages with Individual MI over the WhatsApp messaging app,” read an indictment filed in May 2022, which later led to Abdiaziz’s jailing.
“In a message sent on or about December 28, 2021, Abdiaziz told Individual MI that he had invested $6 million [Sh774 million] in Kenya over the past three years.”
For starters, the source of the money was the US government through its feeding programme.
Determined to keep children well-fed during the pandemic, the state of Minnesota loosened its terms, and a sponsor organisation called Feeding Our Future saw a get-rich-quick opportunity, which later roped in numerous individuals of Somali origin.
The United States Attorney explained the fraud in the indictment documents as a derogation of a noble initiative.
“Historically, the Federal Child Nutrition Program has generally functioned by providing meals to children involved in educational-based programmes or activities. During the Covid-19 pandemic, however, the USDA [United States Department of Agriculture] waived some of the standard requirements for participation in the Federal Child Nutrition Program. Among other things, the USDA allowed for-profit restaurants to participate in the program,” the Attorney stated.
Top row from left: Abdiaziz Farah, Abdimajid Nur and Hayat Nur. Bottom row from left: Mohamed Ismail, Mukhtar Shariff, Abdiwahab Aftin and Said Farah. A jury has convicted five defendants in the first federal trial regarding Feeding Our Future fraud scheme.
Photo credit: Pool
“The USDA also allowed for off-site food distribution to children outside of educational programs. At the same time, the state government's stay-at-home order and telework policies made it difficult to oversee the program. These changes left the program vulnerable to fraud and abuse.”
With the nearly Sh100 million received from Abdiaziz, it is not clear how Capital View Properties invested the money.
On Wednesday, the Nation contacted the company through the phone number they had provided to the Registrar of Companies.
A Ms Zeitun picked up the call. She denied any links between the company and Abdiaziz. However, Mr Maalim Aftin had been among those put on trial over the fraud. He was acquitted by a jury in June 2024.
“He was initially mentioned, but he was later acquitted,” said Zeitun. “He lives in America and does business with some of the people who have been mentioned.”
EDITOR'S NOTE: In an earlier version of this article, we reported that Mr Abdifatah Maalim Aftin, the largest shareholder in Capital View Properties, had been among those put on trial over the fraud. The correct position is that it was Mr Abdiwahab Maalim Aftin of Minnesota who was tried and acquitted. Mr Abdifatah has since clarified that he has never been put on trial. We apologise for the mix-up.
