10 Lawful Permanent Residents Indicted on Federal Charges for Minnesota Voter Fraud

Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Wednesday that a federal grand jury has indicted ten lawful permanent residents accused of voting illegally or attempting to do so in multiple Minnesota elections, including the state’s August 2026 primary.

The defendants, originally from Liberia, Canada, South Africa, Brazil, Bosnia, Germany, Ghana, and Lithuania, allegedly lied to election officials and claimed U.S. citizenship to register to vote. They are accused of participating in the 2022 and 2024 general elections, according to court records.

"Voter fraud erodes the public's trust in our electoral system, and it's vital to our democratic process that we do everything that we can to restore that trust," Blanche said during a press conference announcing the charges. "The most basic way the Department of Justice can accomplish this restoration of trust is by working to make sure the only people voting in an election in the United States are American citizens who are eligible to vote."

The ten defendants were charged separately. They are Bhator Konah Bryant, 61, of Liberia; Edvile Vaidoto Edmunds, 59, of Lithuania; Joshua Frederick Kofi Edzie, 63, of Ghana; Alan Barbu Kargbo, 48, of Liberia; Paul Kras, 78, of Germany; Fadil Rasim Ozegovic, 58, of Bosnia; Aparecido Donizetti Padovan, 62, of Brazil; Chris Adam Pettiquoi, 43, of Liberia; Christian Liam Schenk, 47, of Canada; and Hester Sophia Weihmann, 69, of South Africa.

Bryant is reportedly the only defendant not charged with voting illegally, but with falsely claiming citizenship in 2024 to register. Making a false citizenship claim to vote is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Voting by a noncitizen is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.

Blanche expressed frustration that the media has not taken the Justice Department's work prosecuting election fraud cases seriously. He stated that since President Trump returned to office, the Justice Department has charged more than 90 people with voter fraud offenses, including 50 illegal immigrants in the past five weeks.

Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin said there have been 10 voter fraud-related convictions and that more than 1,600 active investigations into similar conduct are underway nationwide.

The Supreme Court recently ruled that the administration may use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database for voter-eligibility checks while litigation continues. SAVE historically helps agencies verify the eligibility of noncitizens applying for public benefits. However, states' use of the database is voluntary, and federal law generally prohibits states from conducting systematic voter-roll purges within 90 days of a federal election, making the ruling's immediate impact limited with the midterms approaching.

During the same press conference, Blanche also announced that the Justice Department filed a judicial misconduct complaint with the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals against several Minnesota federal judges. The complaint stems from the judges speaking with The New York Times about cases the department considered pending. Blanche asserted that this action violated judicial canons and ethical duties, requesting the judges recuse themselves from cases involving the Department of Homeland Security due to perceived bias.