An extraordinary Global Carbon Credit fraud by an Assamese

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Tridip Kumar Goswami, along with Kenneth Newcombe, is at the center of an extraordinary and never before fraud scandal to the tune of more than $100 million, involving the carbon credit market bringing world wide attention and every major media outlet of the United States have reported widely focussing attenion on the Global fight on climate change.

According to news report published in world media, including The Washinton Post, The Bloomberg, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal besides the statements from the US Attorney New Your’s office – they have been charged with manipulating data in carbon offset projects designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, particularly through the installation of efficient cookstoves in rural areas of Malawi, Zambia, and Angola.

The project, led by their company, CQC Impact Investors, claimed to generate carbon credits based on exaggerated data, making the initiatives appear more successful than they were.

Tridip Goswami, the company’s former head of carbon and sustainability accounting, describing him in the US Attorney’s Office report as a partner in the alleged scheme. Goswami, who lives in India, and Newcombe are charged with wire fraud conspiracy, commodities fraud conspiracy, wire fraud and commodities fraud. Newcombe is also charged with securities fraud conspiracy and securities fraud.

The new fraud charges—quite rare in the voluntary carbon credit market—highlight the vulnerability of a system critical to combating climate change. This is particularly evident in cookstove projects, where developers have considerable flexibility in calculating emission reductions, and the devices are often distributed in remote areas, making external oversight more challenging.

Goswami, a professional with extensive experience in carbon and sustainability accounting, has had his career thrown into question due to this scandal. Based in US and India, he has been deeply involved in environmental projects aimed at reducing emissions, but these legal issues have cast a significant shadow over his work and reputation. According to his Linkedin Profile, he is currently the Founding Director of Ecoveda Climate with registered office in NOIDA.

The fraudulent activities involved inflating the number of operational cookstoves and overstating their effectiveness in reducing carbon emissions. These falsified carbon credits were then sold to companies seeking to offset their carbon footprints, leading to a multi-million-dollar fraud case that has rocked the global carbon credit market.

Investigations into the matter revealed the discrepancies, and criminal charges were filed in the United States against both Goswami and Newcombe. While CQC has managed to avoid direct criminal charges by cooperating fully with authorities and agreeing to cancel the fraudulent credits, both Goswami and Newcombe face serious legal consequences, including charges of securities fraud, wire fraud, and commodities fraud.

Jason Steele, the COO of CQC, who was also involved in the scheme, has pled guilty and is cooperating with investigators, which could influence the outcomes of the trial for Goswami and Newcombe.

Here are the news in the world media

In The Bloomberg : https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-10-02/former-c-quest-ceo-newcombe-charged-with-carbon-credit-fraud/

In The Washingtong Post : https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/10/03/carbon-offsets-ken-newcombe-indicted/

The Guardian : https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/oct/04/ex-carbon-offsetting-boss-kenneth-newcombe-charged-in-new-york-with-multimillion-dollar

The Wall Street Journal : https://www.wsj.com/articles/former-executives-of-carbon-credit-project-developer-cqc-charged-with-fraud-5641b9d9

US Attorney’s Office : https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/us-attorney-announces-criminal-charges-multi-year-fraud-scheme-market-carbon-credits


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