UPDATE 1-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
(Adds statement from Mozilo's attorney)
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 called the court's order "disappointing" but added he was confident Mozilo "will be vindicated once the complete record is presented to the court ..." Continued...
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