Angelo R. Mozilo, former CEO of Countrywide Financial Corp, winner of the 2008 Worst Company In America award, and oddly orange-tinted bastard, has settled with the Security and Exchange Commission and will to pay fines and forfeit ill-gotten gains in excess of $67 million.
The lawsuit, filed in June of 2009, uncovered emails in which Mr. Mozilo described Countrywide’s loan products as “toxic” and “poison” more than four years ago.
Mozilo agreed to pay $22.5 million in fines to the SEC and to turn over $45 million in ill-gotten gains to former shareholders who have sued him, said the LA Times.
Mozilo, as well as former Countrywide president David Sambol are both barred from ever serving as officers or directors of public companies.
A criminal investigation of Mozilo remains open, according to the LA Times.
Countrywide’s Angelo Mozilo settles lawsuit for $67.5 million [LA Times]
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So the gig as a Coppertone model is still OK
What, no mention of the recipients of loans via “Friends of Angelo” VIP program?
I mean, maybe it might be important to mention that the Senate Banking Committee Chair Christopher Dodd got a sweetheart deal from Countywide…
Dodd would never allow that to get out, and the media gladly helps him. It is amazing how the architects of the financial meltdown, Dodd, Frank, and Mozilo have been treated with kid gloves by the media.
He looks like an Oompa Loompa
No need to insult the little guys…
I do believe that at one time Mr. Mozilo wanted to make home ownership achievable for the masses, as he claims. But I don’t think it was any altruistic goal of his, I believe that he wanted to wring money out of more people than the old mortgage standards allowed. Under the old rules, you could only get a mortgage if you made your bones and demonstrated both the ability to afford the house, and the responsibility to pay it. That concept was his enemy; it limited how many people he could swindle. So he rewrote the rules, and didn’t think much about how it would come back to bite him or anyone else for that matter. He just didn’t care about how anyone else came out of this.
nothing came back to bite him.
“Oh, hi guys. You say i have to pay a $62 million fine? Would you like cash or a check….”
Hell yes. FINISH HIM.
Yeah right. They will make him pay back maybe 3% of the money that he stole. Wow, what a killing blow. Justice is served.
I can see it now, Angelo (Angel?) and Bernie sitting in the same cell playing Monopoly, minus the get out of jail free card of course.
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!
He looks like he just caught a glimpse inside the Ark of the Covenant.
What’s infuriating is those fines are just pocket change to that guy. Between the years of 2001-2006, he made $470 million. Stick him in a cage somewhere! Fines are meaningless when you have that much money.
True.. How about they freeze all his assets? Make him sweat a little bit..
Same for when Enron went under and all the board members, ceo, cfo, etc wouldn’t talk.. The government should be able to freeze their assets.. That would get them coming and talking to the government in the heart beat..
As the saying goes.. If Bill Gates was walking down the street and reached in his pocket for his keys and a $100 bill fell out.. It wouldn’t matter for him to reach down and pick it up because in the short time, he’s easily made quadruple that..
Take *all* of his assets, and use them to, say, pay off Countrywide-issued mortgages.
And if you read the LA Times article, 2/3 of his fine (the 45 million) is actually going to be paid by Bank of America and their insurers (and they will also reimburse Sambol’s 5 million fine, leaving him with just $520,000 he actually pays). AND, the deal means they avoid going on trial for misleading investors
Must go to the same tanning salon as John Behner!
Seriously, does ANYONE think this is going to punish him. He has made undres of millions of dollars. This fine is just his “cost of doing business”. I’d rather see him locked up for 5 to 10 years. (Maybe the tan will fade.)
$67.5million penalty? Big.flippin’.deal.
The article goes on to say that Mozilo cashed out $140million in stock options while Countrywide was circling the drain. Poor little Angelo is still at least $72.5million in the black.
He was fabulously wealthy before the lawsuit settlement and now he is…still fabulously wealthy? Yeah, those lawsuits and fines sure stung a little, didn’t they?
Seriously, where’s the deterrent in this? A just outcome would be a criminal penalty that turned him into a poor man.
After capital gains and other taxes the fine likely would put him, from your figure, in the red.
Actually no, considering Bank of America is paying for 2/3 of it, included in his contract when they acquired Countrywide
So you believe that he actually pays as much in taxes as you allude to in your post? Somehow I don’t think he pays anywhere near as much as the average citizen. The capital gains taxes alone (depending upon how long he held the shares) are much lower than the average citizen’s income tax.
Oompa-Loompa dupidy doo!
Oompa-Loompa dupidy doo! you did not read the comments that came before you.
Now when are real estate agents going to pay their ill-gotten gains back?
Start executing these crooks.
If corporations are people, then knowingly taking actions that result in their demise is manslaughter or murder.
This man is living the American Dream and you’re all just jealous.
Given the number of people who have lost their homes as a result of his actions, that’s about as low as saying Hitler was living the German Dream and the Jews and Gays were just jealous.
As Godwinian as that was, I still lolled.
When the public reads these types of stories, it so easy to associate the acronym “CEO” with “Sleazy, scumbag, slimeball, shit stain” (Alliteration bonus points), and for the time being, the CEO in question becomes the face of all CEO’s.
Imagine that literally. Literally imagine that man’s face on all CEO’s.
Christ.
He must hang out with John Boehner.
I’m so glad that when I refinanced and got out of my Countrywide/BoA ARM, that I switched banks…not that Chase is all roses.
He needs to have a tanning bed “accident”. He gets into a tanning bed normal (or as close to normal he is) and come out flat broke and all his assets given to the masses he has screwed over.
What, no jail time? What a joke…he pays a fine, and continues merrily on his way. Great. He probably has a lot more stashed somewhere else.
It stated even in this brief write-up that criminal investigations remain open. I would assume that means there is still possibility of jail time.
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2010/10/15/1763779/countrywide-co-founder-tries-to.html
He’s not being forced to pay anything, BoA is covering it!
Remarkable isn’t it? Further, “under the settlement, the three men did not admit wrongdoing”. So they can hold their heads high at the country club.
B of A is not paying it you are? You do not really think that the B of A fees and charges etc are really for business operation do you?
Snookie called. She wants her Ronco spray tanning kit back.
you know, if you’re going to settle with a man like this, the settlement should be “we’ll let you leave with your freedom.” he should lose everything he’s earned as CEO of that company, his houses, his cars – anything he’s obtained over the years as an executive for that company.
people have lost their livelihoods, their homes, in some cases their lives. more than one family has been broken by this mess. all because of crooks like him. & he stills walks away well ahead of the game.
So, the bully took all your money and when someone stopped him they forced him to give back a nickel? Will that kind of punishment deter someone else from doing the same thing?
Lanigan nailed it. Mozilo won’t actually pay a dime. BoA will pay off a portion and Mozilo has no responsibility to pay the remainder.
Strong work SEC….
Without the taxpayer bailouts, Mozio can make all the bad loans he wants ans suffer the consequences. Simple fix.
Is Mozilo really a child of unmarried parents? Even if he is, why is that fact important enough to be put in the headline?
Seriously, what’s that about?
That’s it? I believe that figure is quite low considering the damage the company did.
Clearly, the law is racist.
Make a billion, pay $62 million and never have to work again? Where do i sign up?
Oh, and the parts about the SEC finally doing it’s job is pure propoganda. the SEC should be disbanded and it’s employees publicly shamed!
Gym Tan and Laundry = Angelo R. Mozilo? So this guy remains free after all the damage he has done WTF?
The government insisted at the request of Barney Frank & Co that the banks make bad loans and now the banks are evil?
He can pay that fine with the money from between the cushions in his couch.
This is bullshit.