Former Homestore CEO Sentenced to Fifteen Years

Former Homestore.com, Inc. CEO Stuart Wolff received a fifteen-year prison sentence for his role in the company's accounting fraud through "round-trip" transactions to inflate revenues during the technology bubble.  A jury convicted Wolff on charges of conspiracy, insider trading, filing false reports with the SEC, falsifying corporate records, and lying to company auditors.  The insider trading counts relate to Wolff's exercise of stock options and then sale of the shares while Homestore.com inflated its revenue related to on-line advertising.  A press release issued by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California (here) notes that Wolff remains free on bond, and the court will hold a hearing on November 13 to decide whether to grant bail pending appeal. (ph)