Ivory Coast Diplomat Cops to Tax Fraud, Gets 15 Months

Koissy Thomas Kemmeth, 52, of New York, New York, is going to prison for 15 months after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and filing false, fictitious, and fraudulent claims against the United States. Sentenced in Alexandria, Virginia, Kemmeth also faces three years of supervised release, must forfeit $37,000, and pay $105,000 in restitution. The verdict, handed down by U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis, III, marks the end of a years-long scheme rooted in diplomatic privilege and papered over with forged documents.

Kemmeth, a native and citizen of the Ivory Coast, worked as a driver for the Ivory Coast Mission to the United Nations—a role that granted him certain protections but not the right to commit federal crimes. From 2010 through February 2015, he colluded with fellow Ivorian national Kouame Tanoh to defraud U.S. institutions by creating fraudulent employment verification letters using official Mission letterhead. These documents falsely claimed Tanoh—or one of his aliases—was employed by the diplomatic mission, even going so far as to misuse the name of a diplomat who had long since returned to Africa.

But the scam didn’t stop at fake job letters. Kemmeth helped Tanoh file false federal and state income tax returns designed to trigger fraudulent refunds. Despite knowing he wasn’t legally allowed to file U.S. tax returns as a foreign diplomat, Kemmeth submitted claims in his own name. He also handed over his bank account information so the ill-gotten refunds could be funneled directly into his accounts. The operation relied on deception, deception, and more deception—each piece layered like a rotten onion.

The mailing address for the Ivory Coast Mission became another weapon in the fraud. With Kemmeth’s knowledge, Tanoh used the official diplomatic address on multiple false filings. Kemmeth would then intercept any correspondence sent to the Mission related to these scams, shielding the operation from detection. The use of a foreign government’s address to perpetrate financial fraud adds a brazen, almost contemptuous, edge to the crimes.

The case was jointly announced by a wall of federal enforcers: Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Terrence P. McKeown of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Clark E. Settles of HSI; Michael McGill of the Social Security Administration OIG; Thomas Holloman of IRS-Criminal Investigation; and Eric M. Thorson, Inspector General of the U.S. Department of the Treasury. They didn’t mince words—this was fraud with diplomatic cover, and it’s now over.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine L. Wong prosecuted the case, which unfolded in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Court records, including those tied to Case No. 1:16-cr-129, are available through PACER and the district’s public docket. The takeaway is clear: diplomatic status isn’t a free pass. Kemmeth played that card and lost—15 months behind bars is the price he’ll pay.