Wraith
04-22-2009, 10:13 AM
Heard this on the news this morning. David B. Kellermann, the acting chief financial officer of the troubled mortgage giant Freddie Mac, was found dead Wednesday morning at his home in Northern Virginia, the police said.
Police on Wednesday outside the Vienna, Va., home where David B. Kellermann, the acting chief financial officer of Freddie Mac, was found dead.
The executive apparently committed suicide by hanging himself, according to people with knowledge of the investigation.
...
Mr. Kellermann, 41, had been Freddie Mac’s chief financial officer since September. He was named to the position when the federal government seized the company and ousted its top executives last fall. In recent weeks, according to neighbors and company officials, Mr. Kellermann had received a bonus of about $800,000. Such bonuses — which totaled $210 million for executives at Freddie Mac and its sibling company Fannie Mae — caused some controversy earlier this month, and some lawmakers called for them to be rescinded.
According to neighbors, Mr. Kellermann hired a private security firm after reporters came to his house to ask about his bonus.
Mr. Kellermann was also involved in recent tense conversations with the company’s federal regulator over its public disclosures. Freddie Mac executives wanted to emphasize to investors that the company was being run for the benefit of the government, rather than shareholders.
The company’s regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Authority, had reportedly pushed to play down that language. Freddie Mac ultimately reported that it made changes to business practices to help the government that “have increased our expenses or caused us to forgo revenue opportunities."
...
Mr. Kellermann had been with Freddie Mac for 16 years, and reported to the chief executive, according to a profile on the company’s Web site. He was responsible for Freddie Mac’s financial reporting, capital oversight, and compliance with federal oversight requirements, and also oversaw the annual budgeting and financial planning.
Before becoming chief financial officer, Mr. Kellermann had served as senior vice president, corporate controller and principal accounting officer. He was a graduate of the University of Michigan and a volunteer board member of the D.C. Coalition for the Homeless.
Regulators with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Justice have been interviewing Freddie Mac officials about possible accounting violations and other topics, the company disclosed in March. It is not known if Mr. Kellermann was one of those interviewed.
...Freddie Mac Executive Found Dead (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/business/23freddie.html) (NY Times)
Emphasis mine. I don't really have any particular political question or debate for this article. We don't know that this guy was involved in any shady dealings within the company. We do know that he had an incredibly stressful job in incredibly trying times.
Police on Wednesday outside the Vienna, Va., home where David B. Kellermann, the acting chief financial officer of Freddie Mac, was found dead.
The executive apparently committed suicide by hanging himself, according to people with knowledge of the investigation.
...
Mr. Kellermann, 41, had been Freddie Mac’s chief financial officer since September. He was named to the position when the federal government seized the company and ousted its top executives last fall. In recent weeks, according to neighbors and company officials, Mr. Kellermann had received a bonus of about $800,000. Such bonuses — which totaled $210 million for executives at Freddie Mac and its sibling company Fannie Mae — caused some controversy earlier this month, and some lawmakers called for them to be rescinded.
According to neighbors, Mr. Kellermann hired a private security firm after reporters came to his house to ask about his bonus.
Mr. Kellermann was also involved in recent tense conversations with the company’s federal regulator over its public disclosures. Freddie Mac executives wanted to emphasize to investors that the company was being run for the benefit of the government, rather than shareholders.
The company’s regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Authority, had reportedly pushed to play down that language. Freddie Mac ultimately reported that it made changes to business practices to help the government that “have increased our expenses or caused us to forgo revenue opportunities."
...
Mr. Kellermann had been with Freddie Mac for 16 years, and reported to the chief executive, according to a profile on the company’s Web site. He was responsible for Freddie Mac’s financial reporting, capital oversight, and compliance with federal oversight requirements, and also oversaw the annual budgeting and financial planning.
Before becoming chief financial officer, Mr. Kellermann had served as senior vice president, corporate controller and principal accounting officer. He was a graduate of the University of Michigan and a volunteer board member of the D.C. Coalition for the Homeless.
Regulators with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Justice have been interviewing Freddie Mac officials about possible accounting violations and other topics, the company disclosed in March. It is not known if Mr. Kellermann was one of those interviewed.
...Freddie Mac Executive Found Dead (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/business/23freddie.html) (NY Times)
Emphasis mine. I don't really have any particular political question or debate for this article. We don't know that this guy was involved in any shady dealings within the company. We do know that he had an incredibly stressful job in incredibly trying times.