The former chief executive officer and chairman of KB Home, Bruce E. Karatz, has been charged with 20 counts of defrauding the Los Angeles homebuilder and its shareholders by awarding himself and others with millions of dollars worth of undisclosed backdated stock options.
According to an indictment returned by a federal grand jury on Thursday, Karatz concealed the backdated stock options for seven years from KB Home’s board of directors, compensation committee and shareholders. U.S. v. Karatz, No. CR 09-00203 (C.D. Calif.).
