5 EYEWITNESS NEWS continues to dig into numerous allegations of fraud in Minnesota — claims that concern hundreds of millions, if not billions, of taxpayer dollars.
At the center of those investigations is the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), the agency responsible for many of the programs now under scrutiny.
On Monday night, 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS anchor Kevin Doran questioned DHS Commissioner Shireen Gandhi about what the state did to catch fraud and how the agency is moving forward.
“I would say that a lot of the work that I did laid the foundation for strong operations in DHS,” Gandhi told Doran.
The commissioner, who was only recently appointed as the permanent DHS commissioner, also defended her past work as compliance director and temporary commissioner.
“We didn’t know then what we know now. So we were doing everything we knew to do,” she said, adding, “I think what happened was we were a trusting state. I don’t think anybody knew the scope of what was going on.”
When asked if we’re still a “trusting state,” Gandhi replied, “I guess I would say I’m not. I’m skeptical.”
Kevin: “When’s the first time fraud came on your radar working at DHS?
Gandhi: “Probably right from the beginning. We have an Office of Inspector General. DHS has always been investigating fraud and referring it to law enforcement.”
Kevin: “Did you have any idea of the side?”
Gandhi: “Not what we’re seeing now, no.”
Kevin: “Minnesota Director of Program Integrity Tim O’Malley’s report came out, and he cited failed culture at DHS going back 50 years. I can’t imagine that people in leadership over the last 50 years were not aware of this. What have you done to change that culture?”
Gandhi: “I have been working to make sure that every employee knows that we welcome questions, we welcome concerns, complaints. In 2025, we had 42 employees that reported information to our complaint hotline saying that they were concerned about something.”
Kevin: “Have all 42 been followed up on?
Gandhi: “Yes, we look into all of them.”
