AG Ellison announced that he has reached a settlement with Brooklyn Center food bank charity West African Family & Community Services (“WAFCS”) and its president Edmund Ocansey. In the settlements, also known as Assurances of Discontinuance, Attorney General Ellison alleges that WAFCS failed to operate under the supervision of its board and allowed Ocansey unsupervised access to funds, some of which he used for his personal benefit.  The Assurances also allege that the organization failed to maintain adequate books and records, implement controls over the nonprofit’s finances, and make required regulatory filings with the state and federal government, among other violations.

“Providing culturally specific food to West African community members is an important cause, so it is all the more disappointing when charitable funds meant for this community are misused. West African Family & Community Services failed to properly control and protect their charitable assets, which is both a violation of the law and of the public’s trust. This settlement marks a path forward for WAFCS to rebuild that trust and ensure that its resources are serving its mission of assisting Minnesota’s West African community.”- AG Ellison

https://www.ag.state.mn.us/Office/Communications/2025/01/29_WAFCS.asp

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