U.S. Department
of Justice
United States v. Jonathan William Mikula, Christian Fernandez, Amit Raj Beri, and Adam Levin
Court Docket Numbers: 2:24-CR-63-SB and 2:24-cr-00754-SB (C.D. Cal.)
Court Assigned: These cases are assigned to United States District Judge Stanley Blumenfeld Jr., who is located at the United States Courthouse, 350 W. 1st St., Courtroom 6C (sixth floor), Los Angeles, CA 90012.
Criminal Charges: On January 29, 2024, Jonathan William Mikula, Christian Fernandez and Amit Raj Beri were charged by information with a criminal conspiracy to tout securities for undisclosed compensation. Mikula was also charged with touting securities for undisclosed compensation. Mikula, Fernandez and Beri have pleaded guilty to these charges and await sentencing.
On December 18, 2024, Adam Levin was charged by information with a criminal conspiracy to tout securities for undisclosed compensation in case 2:24-cr-754-SB.
According to the allegations in the charges, knowing that placement within and promotion by an investor newsletter called “Palm Beach Venture” permitted securities issuers to reach additional investors and raise additional funds, and knowing that Palm Beach Venture would make the materially misleading representation that neither it “nor its affiliates receive compensation for bringing this deal to you,” defendant Mikula agreed with his codefendants and others to write and place articles and other promotional pieces regarding the securities of specific issuers on the understanding and agreement that such issuers and their associates would pay undisclosed direct and indirect compensation to him, defendants Fernandez and Beri, and others.
According to the allegations made against defendant Levin in the December 2024 case, defendant Levin participated in that same conspiracy by agreeing with Mikula, Fernandez, Beri and others that he would provide undisclosed compensation to those co-conspirators so that “Palm Beach Venture” would tout a Regulation-A securities offering by Hightimes Holding Corp., the publisher of High Times magazine and parent company for that media brand.
For more information about the two cases, please see:
Mikula, et al. Charging Document
The information on this website will be updated as new developments arise in the case.
Upcoming Proceedings
- Jonathan William Mikula was sentenced on October 21, 2025, to 28 months in federal prison. The restitution hearing that was scheduled for January 13, 2026, was vacated as moot based on the Court’s Order dated January 8, 2026, which is the Court’s order on restitution, found at Docket No. 184.
- Amit Raj Beri was sentenced on October 28, 2025, to nine months in federal prison and three months of home confinement. The restitution hearing that was scheduled for January 13, 2026, was vacated as moot based on the Court’s Order dated January 8, 2026, which is the Court’s order on restitution, found at Docket No. 184.
- Christian Fernandez was sentenced on December 16, 2025, to six months in federal prison. The restitution hearing that was scheduled for January 13, 2026, was vacated as moot based on the Court’s Order dated January 8, 2026, which is the Court’s order on restitution, found at Docket No. 184.
- A sentencing hearing for Adam Levin is scheduled on May 5, 2026, at 8 a.m. PDT in Courtroom 6C (sixth floor) before United States District Judge Stanley Blumenfeld Jr., 350 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012.
By court order entered on April 28, 2026, the Court denied the government’s request to amend the restitution order in U.S. v. Jonathan Mikula et al., 24-CR-00063-SB (Dkt. No. 209).
The sentencing hearing in U.S. v. Adam Levin, 24-CR-00754-SB, for defendant Adam Levin, has been continued to July 28, 2026, at 8:00 am.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission also filed civil complaints in the Central District of California federal court, including SEC v. Mikula, et al., Case No. 22-CV-7096 -SB, involving the defendants charged in the criminal cases of U.S. v. Mikula et al. and U.S. v. Adam Levin. In these matters, civil judgments have been entered, and the judgments may have provided for civil penalties, disgorgement, or both. Depending on funds collected and feasibility, the SEC may propose a plan to distribute funds to victims of the conduct alleged in the SEC’s complaint(s). For further information, and to notify the SEC of any potential claim for recovery or restitution, you may contact the SEC Senior Trial attorney in the Los Angeles Regional Office, Charles Canter, at (323) 965-3983, or by email, at canterc@sec.gov.