A global dragnet has tightened around Somalia’s capital after US prosecutors secured the arrest of a fugitive wanted in a major pandemic-related fraud case.
Federal agents detained Abdikerm Abdelahi Eidleh, 42, in Mogadishu on Thursday in what authorities described as a coordinated international operation.
The US Department of Justice said the arrest followed close cooperation between the FBI and Somali intelligence services.
Prosecutors allege Eidleh served as a senior associate to the organiser of a large Minnesota-based pandemic charity fraud scheme that siphoned off around $250 million in federal relief funds intended to support food programmes for vulnerable children.
According to investigators, Eidleh fled the United States for East Africa as the criminal network began to unravel.
He is accused of recruiting participants, collecting illicit payments, and helping launder proceeds through shell companies.
Authorities also say he helped set up fictitious supplier firms that billed the US government for meals that were never delivered.
Minnesota US Attorney Daniel Rosen described Eidleh as a “big fish” following his arrest.
Somali officials, meanwhile, have expressed concern over the return of international fugitives seeking to evade prosecution by relocating to the country.
The case comes amid heightened political tensions in the United States, where federal authorities have intensified action targeting segments of Minnesota’s Somali community.
Immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis have recently triggered controversy, including reports of fatalities and public unrest.
The White House has also moved to revoke temporary protected status for more than a thousand Somali nationals, a decision that has been temporarily blocked by a federal judge.
The broader legal and political dispute remains ongoing.