SEC Secures Consent Judgments in Minnesota Pump-and-Dump Fraud Case

USA: SEC Secures Consent Judgments in Minnesota Pump-and-Dump Scheme

Case Overview

Federal prosecutors in Minnesota announced that the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota entered final consent judgments on January 26, 2026, concluding the Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement action against three individuals accused of operating a pump‑and‑dump investment scheme.

Scheme Mechanics

According to the SEC’s amended complaint filed November 1, 2021, the defendants—Saied Jaberian, Christopher Rajkaran, and Mark A. Miller—hijacked inactive penny‑stock companies between July 2017 and April 2019, issued false and misleading statements, and then inflated and sold the companies’ publicly traded shares along with two additional issuers.

Criminal Sentences

In a parallel criminal case brought by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, Jaberian pleaded guilty to one count of criminal securities fraud and received a two‑year probation sentence. Rajkaran and Miller each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud, receiving imprisonment terms of 18 months and 12 months plus one day, respectively, followed by two years of supervised release and criminal forfeiture obligations.

Judgment Against Saied Jaberian

The consent judgment requires Jaberian to disgorge $66,749 plus $10,348 in prejudgment interest. It also reinstates permanent injunctions originally entered on April 9, 2025, barring him from violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act, Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act, Rule 10b‑5, participating in any penny‑stock offering, or serving as an officer or director of a public company.

Rajkaran’s Default Judgment

On December 5, 2024, the court entered a default judgment enjoining Rajkaran from the same securities law violations and ordering disgorgement of $68,001 plus $10,223 in prejudgment interest. Of that amount, $53,487 was satisfied through a money‑judgment forfeiture order linked to his criminal case.

Miller’s Disgorgement Order

Following Miller’s consent to injunctive relief, the district court on February 12, 2025 ordered him to disgorge $126,007 plus $9,536 in prejudgment interest. An additional $38,292 of the disgorgement was satisfied via a money‑judgment forfeiture order stemming from his parallel criminal proceedings.

SEC Enforcement Outlook

The SEC’s litigation, handled by Alyssa A. Qualls, Robert M. Moye, and Raven A. Winters, underscores the agency’s continued focus on dismantling fraudulent penny‑stock operations and enforcing strict penalties to protect investors.
This report is based on information from SEC, licensed under Public Domain (U.S. Government Work). Source: Official U.S. Government release.