WASHINGTON — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged six former top executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with civil fraud, saying they misled the government and taxpayers about risky subprime mortgages the mortgage giants held during the housing bust.
Those charged include the agencies' two former CEOs, Fannie's Daniel Mudd and Freddie's Richard Syron. They led the companies when the housing bubble burst in late 2006 and 2007. The four other top executives also worked for the companies during that time.
The case was filed in federal court in New York City.
Lawyers for Mudd and Syron couldn't be reached.
Fannie and Freddie own or guarantee about half of U.S. mortgages, or nearly 31 million loans. The Bush administration seized control of the mortgage giants in September 2008.
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