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In a courtroom drama that has finally reached its climax, a California federal judge has ordered four individuals and a web of companies to pay nearly $67 million over a massive cannabis investment scam that prosecutors say never grew a single plant.

The SEC $67M Weedgenics Fraud Case unfolded like a cautionary tale of smoke and mirrors, with investors lured by promises of state-of-the-art cannabis cultivation sites that, according to regulators, were pure fabrication.

Federal Judge Slams Down the Gavel

U.S. District Judge John W. Holcomb handed down final judgments this week, spelling financial ruin for alleged scheme architects Patrick Earl Williams and Rolf Max Hirschmann (who also went by “Max Bergmann”), along with relief defendants Tyler Campbell and Michael Delgado.

Hirschmann faces the steepest bill — nearly $39 million, including $20.4 million in disgorgement with interest and a $10.8 million civil penalty. Williams owes over $16.5 million, stemming from disgorgement, prejudgment interest, and a separate $7 million fine.

Campbell and two related entities must return more than $4.2 million, while Delgado and his affiliates were ordered to disgorge nearly $7.4 million.

A Ponzi-Like Cannabis Mirage

According to the SEC, the fraud ran through Integrated National Resources Inc., operating under the name Weedgenics. The scheme, launched as early as 2023, pitched investors on “nonexistent” cannabis grow facilities, complete with glossy photographs and fabricated financial statements.

“These facilities never belonged to defendants,” the SEC argued. “Their tens of millions in supposed revenues were conjured from thin air.”

A court-appointed receiver reported this week that cooperation from the defendants has been “very limited.” Records were found to be “incomplete, deleted/destroyed, or otherwise non-existent.” Still, investigators clawed back about $8 million in cash and seized 14 luxury vehicles.

Defendants Stay Silent

Williams, representing himself, has refused to engage with the suit. Hirschmann, Delgado, and Campbell invoked their Fifth Amendment rights.

The February phase of the case had already resulted in $38 million in judgments against entity defendants, but this week’s ruling largely closes the chapter on one of the SEC’s most audacious fraud prosecutions in recent memory.

The SEC is represented by Daniel S. Lim, Christopher Anthony Nowlin, and Gary Y. Leung, while Weedgenics’ receiver Krista L. Freitag is represented by attorneys from Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP.

Counsel for several defendants was unavailable. Delgado continues to represent himself.