Litigation Releases (Michael Bowen and Chol Kim a/k/a Brandon Kim)

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Litigation Release No. 26575 / June 25, 2026

Securities and Exchange Commission v. Michael Bowen and Chol Kim a/k/a Brandon Kim, No. 3:22-cv-1415 (N.D. Tex. filed June 30, 2022)

SEC Obtains Final Consent Judgment as to Sales Manager Charged in Alleged Fraudulent Oil and Gas Offering

On June 8, 2026, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas entered a final judgment by consent as to Michael Bowen, whom the SEC previously charged with making false and misleading statements related to the offer and sale of Cannon Operating Company LLC's securities.

According to the SEC's first amended complaint, between January 2018 and September 2020, Cannon and William Glen Baker fraudulently raised approximately $2,182,687 from at least 140 investors through the unregistered offer and sale of working interests in oil and gas wells in Oklahoma. The complaint alleged that, from April 2016 through September 2018, Bowen served as Cannon's chief operating officer and sales manager. The complaint further alleged that, for one of Cannon's offerings, the company's offering materials, which Bowen helped draft, misrepresented the performance of Cannon's prior wells in the same field, failed to disclose sales commissions, and otherwise misstated how investor funds would be used. According to the complaint, Bowen also directed and concealed the payment of the undisclosed sales commissions and acted as an unregistered broker.

Without admitting the allegations in the complaint, Bowen consented to the entry of the final judgment that permanently enjoins him from violating Sections 5 and 17(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 15(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and from participating in the issuance, purchase, offer, or sale of any security except for purchases or sales of securities listed on a national securities exchange for his own personal accounts. In addition, the final judgment orders Bowen to pay disgorgement in the amount of $106,000, prejudgment interest in the amount of $48,827.18, and a civil penalty in the amount of $150,000.

The SEC's litigation was led by Jason Rose and supervised by Keefe Bernstein of the SEC's Fort Worth Regional Office.