DOJ Announces Federal Indictments Against 10 Foreign Nationals Accused of Illegal Voting in Minnesota and Judicial Misconduct Complaint– amgreatness.com

The Department of Justice on Wednesday announced federal indictments against ten foreign nationals accused of illegally registering and voting in Minnesota elections, while also filing a judicial misconduct complaint against nearly the entire federal bench in the deep blue state.

Attorney General Todd Blanche said a federal grand jury returned the indictments alleging nine counts of illegal voting by an alien and nine counts of falsely claiming U.S. citizenship to register to vote.

“Today’s charges allege that ten foreign nationals committed voter fraud in Minnesota, one voting illegally as recently as this August’s primary,” said AG Blanche. “The law is clear, only American citizens may vote in American elections, and enforcing this law is fundamental to our democracy. That should not be a partisan concept.”

During a press conference with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Blanche said the defendants illegally Voted in the November 2022 and 2024 General Election and as recently as the August 2026 Primary Election.

The defendants come from Liberia, Lithuania, Ghana, Germany, Bosnia, Brazil, Canada, and South Africa. Notably, one defendant, Joshua Frederick Kofi Edzie, is accused of voting illegally in the August 2026 primary.

Blanche told reporters that since President Trump returned to office, the Justice Department has prosecuted more than 90 people with voter related offenses, including 50 aliens in just the past five weeks. He added that there are currently hundreds of voter fraud cases being investigated across the country.  Blanche contrasted that with the merely 13 cases that were investigated during the Biden years.

“That’s much different from what we’re doing,” Blanche said. “We’re focused on accountability and restoring trust in our elections.”

Blanche also announced that the Justice Department just filed the judicial misconduct complaint with 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, accusing all but one of the Minnesota judges of  violating various judicial canons, including speaking to the media during active lawsuits.

“Specifically, the former chief judge spoke on the record to the New York Times about the immigration [enforcement] surge late last year and early this year in Minneapolis,” Blanche told reporters.

The AG was referring to Judge Patrick Schiltz, the former chief judge of the U.S. District Court for Minnesota, who gave a 90-minute interview to the Times in which he described the administration’s handling of Operation Metro Surge as a “grave threat to the rule of law.”

Six other members of Minnesota’s federal bench also agreed to speak with the Times, Blanche said, accusing them of violating their ethical duties.

The Justice Department argues that the Times article demonstrated that the judges had an animosity toward the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), undermining the impartiality of the federal court in Minnesota.

“These judges should be ordered to recuse from any matters involving DHS because the public reasonably questions their impartiality in cases involving immigration,” said Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter and Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward in the formal complaint.

DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin emphasized that the Trump administration will not allow the votes of American citizens to be cancelled out by illegal votes.

“Our message to aliens who vote in American elections is clear: we will find you, arrest you, and you will face the consequences, including criminal charges and deportation,” Mullin stated. “Under President Trump’s leadership, this administration will never allow the votes of American citizens to be cancelled out by non-citizens illegally voting in our elections. Only American citizens should be electing American leaders.”

The defendants and their charges include:

Bhator Konah Bryant, 61, a Liberian national: on one count of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote. She is alleged to have falsely claimed United States citizenship when registering to vote on October 18, 2024. The defendant had her initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 29, 2026.

Edvile Vaidoto Edmunds, 59, a Lithuanian national: on one count of voting by alien. She is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota on November 8, 2022. The defendant had her initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 29, 2026.

Joshua Frederick Kofi Edzie, 63, a Ghanian national: on two counts of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by alien. He is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota on August 11, 2026, and falsely claimed United States citizenship in order to vote on October 23, 2024 and August 11, 2026. The defendant had his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 28, 2026.

Alan Barbu Kargbo, 48, a Liberian national: on one count of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by alien. He is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota and falsely claimed United States citizenship in order to vote on November 5, 2024. The defendant had his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 28, 2026.

Paul Kras, 78, a German national: on one count of voting by alien. He is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota on November 5, 2024. The defendant had his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 29, 2026.

Fadil Rasim Ozegovic, 58, a Bosnian national: on one count of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by alien. He is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota and falsely claimed United States citizenship in order to vote on November 5, 2024. The defendant had his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 29, 2026.

Aparecido Donizetti Padovan, 62, a Brazilian national: on one count of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by alien. He is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota and falsely claimed United States citizenship in order to vote on November 5, 2024. The defendant had his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 29, 2026.

Chis Adam Pettiquoi, 43, a Liberian national: on one count of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by alien. He is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota and falsely claimed United States citizenship in order to vote on November 5, 2024. The defendant had his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 29, 2026.

Christian Liam Schenk, 47, a Canadian national: on one count of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by alien. He is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota and falsely claimed United States citizenship in order to vote on November 5, 2024. The defendant had his initial appearance in the District of Massachusetts on September 29, 2026.

Hester Sophia Weihmann, 69, a South African national: on one count of making a false claim of citizenship in order to vote and one count of voting by alien. She is alleged to have voted illegally as an alien in Minnesota and falsely claimed United States citizenship in order to vote on November 5, 2024. The defendant had her initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Elsa M. Bullard on September 29, 2026.

These cases were investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and are being prosecuted by First Assistant United States Attorney Joseph S. Teirab, according to the DOJ press release.