by Calculated Risk on 8/07/2009 01:26:00 PM

From a SEC 8-K filed this morning:

On August 6, 2009, The Colonial BancGroup, Inc. (the Company or BancGroup) was informed by the U.S. Department of Justice that it is the target of a federal criminal investigation relating to the Company’s mortgage warehouse lending division and related alleged accounting irregularities. The Company has been informed that the alleged accounting irregularities relate to more than one year’s audited financial statements and regulatory financial reporting, and the Company’s Board of Directors and Audit Committee are making every effort to determine the impact of these alleged accounting irregularities on the Company’s financial statements and regulatory financial reporting. The Company intends to cooperate with the investigation.

Earlier in 2009, BancGroup provided documents to the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) in response to a subpoena issued by SIGTARP.

Also, the SEC has issued subpoenas to BancGroup seeking documents related to, among other things, BancGroup’s disclosures related to its participation in the U.S. Treasury Department’s Troubled Asset Relief Program and BancGroup’s disclosures respecting accounting for loan loss reserves. BancGroup has provided, and continues to provide, documents in response to these subpoenas.

On August 5, 2009, the Alabama State Banking Department provided notice to Colonial Bank that the Alabama State Banking Board will meet on August 12, 2009, at which time Colonial Bank will be asked to consent to the Superintendent’s exercise of his statutory authority to appoint the FDIC as receiver or conservator for the Bank if and when the Superintendent deems such appointment to be necessary. In the meantime, the Company continues to explore all possible capital-raising alternatives that would position it and Colonial Bank to comply with the requirements of the Orders to Cease and Desist to which they are subject.
emphasis added

Here is the press release.