Countrywide ex-CEO Mozilo must face SEC fraud case
* Mozilo sought to dismiss fraud, insider trading case
* Case also continues against ex-Countrywide COO, CFO
* Judge: Countrywide's poor underwriting could be material
By Jonathan Stempel and Gina Keating
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES, Nov 4 (Reuters) - A federal judge rejected a request by Angelo Mozilo, the former chief executive of mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp, to dismiss a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit accusing him of securities fraud and insider trading.
In a Tuesday court filing, U.S. District Judge John Walter in Los Angeles also rejected requests by David Sambol and Eric Sieracki, respectively Countrywide's former chief operating officer and former chief financial officer, to dismiss related SEC fraud charges.
Countrywide had been the largest U.S. mortgage lender before liquidity dried up in summer of 2007, leading to its acquisition the following year by Bank of America Corp (BAC.N: Quote, Profile, Research) for $2.5 billion.
Mozilo's lawyer David Siegel did not immediately return a call for comment. Walter Brown, who represents Sambol, declined to comment. Nicolas Morgan, who represents Sieracki, also did not immediately return a call.
The SEC sued the defendants in June, accusing them of misleading investors about the quality of Countrywide's loans, including tens of billions of dollars of risky subprime and adjustable-rate mortgages. Continued...
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