Adam Jackson
A Beverly Hills man on supervised release following an 11-year prison sentence has been indicted by a federal grand jury, accused of defrauding investors out of over $9 million via a nonexistent hemp enterprise, according to federal prosecutors.
Mark Roy Anderson, 68, had a history of convictions that led to his recent indictment associated with Harvest Farm Group Inc., based on a detailed criminal complaint filed earlier this month. His supervised release originates from a 2011 guilty plea for defrauding investors with a misrepresented oil business, according to Law360.
In the indictment, Anderson is accused of falsely claiming ownership of a hemp farm in Kern County, California, under the Harvest Farm Group moniker. Prosecutors allege that Anderson asserted he had processed the farm’s hemp into medical-grade CBD isolate and Delta 8 using his own machinery and equipment.
“To maintain an image of trustworthiness,” Anderson told investors he “was not the ‘Mark Roy Anderson’ with multiple prior fraud convictions” and concealed his previous convictions, which include mail fraud, wire fraud, grand theft, forgery, preparing false evidence, and money laundering.
Additionally, he hid the fact he was still serving a criminal sentence and on supervised release while soliciting investments, according to the indictment.
The indictment outlines five charges of wire fraud against Anderson, each corresponding to alleged transfers in 2020, ranging from approximately $50,000 to $640,000. The indictment claims that three transfers took place in July, another in September, and the final one in November.
Prosecutors contend that Anderson used the investors’ money for personal expenditures. Those expenses allegedly include over $650,000 on luxury and vintage vehicles, more than $400,000 in cash withdrawals, and over $142,000 in retail purchases. Additionally, Anderson is accused of spending over $1.3 million to acquire a residence and adjacent citrus groves in Ojai.
Anderson’s arraignment is slated for May 30. Potential penalties, should Anderson be found guilty of the current charges, have yet to be revealed by prosecutors.
One comment
Skip Ballesteri
May 31, 2023 at 10:10 pm
Mr Anderson took more than this case list. There are other scams where he took another $6M-$7M in cash and hundreds of pounds of cannabis flower.
He even burned our friends daughter for 1 liter of D9
Habitual con man at all levels
Mark will die behind bars where he belongs as an old lonely broke asshole.
Deserves what he gets