BOSTON -- Two men were arrested on charges related to the illegal access of computers containing personal identification information of Countrywide Home Loan customers and the illegal sale of the data, the FBI announced Tuesday.

Mortgage Worker Accused Of Selling Customer Data

Rene L. Rebollo Jr., 36, of Pasadena, Calif., a former employee of Countrywide Home Loan, was arrested Tuesday without incident at his residence by special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Rebollo is scheduled to make his initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon in United States District Court in Los Angeles.

A second man charged in the case, Wahid Siddiqi, 25, of Thousand Oaks, Calif., was arrested Tuesday afternoon by FBI agents. Siddiqi allegedly purchased the identification data. He is expected to make his initial court appearance on Monday.

According to a criminal complaint filed on Monday, the FBI, as well as investigators with Countrywide Financial, discovered a security breach at the company and initiated a joint investigation. The complaint alleges that Rebollo was employed as a senior financial analyst for Countrywide Home Loan's subprime mortgage division, Full Spectrum Lending in Pasadena. In his position, he had access to Countrywide computer databases, many of which contained sensitive information of Countrywide clients. Countrywide fired Rebollo in July 2008.

"Countrywide values its customer relationships, and the security of their financial information is a top priority. As has been reported in early August, Countrywide recently learned that some customer information has been provided by a Countrywide associate to unauthorized persons outside the company in violation of company policy. Countrywide investigators reported evidence of possible theft of personal account information to the FBI and continue to work closely with the FBI in its ongoing investigation. We cannot comment further on the investigation at this time," Countrywide said in a statement.

According to the complaint, Rebollo was interviewed by FBI agents last month and acknowledged that he was responsible for giving out account information belonging to Countrywide customers to third parties over the course of two years. Rebollo said he obtained the information from Countrywide computers at his workspace and saved the reports to personally-owned flash drives, according to the complaint. After Rebollo saved the Countrywide Home Loan data on the flash drives, he left the Countrywide Home Loan premises with the intent to sell the data, according to the complaint.

Rebollo opened a personal bank account specifically for the purpose of depositing and holding the illegal proceeds of the Countrywide data sales, and he estimated that he profited approximately $50,000 to $70,000 from the sale of the Countrywide-owned data, according to the complaint.

Rebollo was requested by other individuals to obtain specific types of data from Countrywide, and he was able to provide the information because of his access to many of Countrywide’s databases that contained information about clients from around the United States, according to the complaint.Siddiqi was recorded by a confidential witness working for the FBI when he placed an order for personal profiles at a negotiated price, according to the complaint. Siddiqi subsequently met the confidential witness and delivered the data, in exchange for cash.

Countrywide investigators are currently analyzing evidence to determine if any of their customers’ identities were compromised.

"We have no evidence to date to indicate that any customer has been the victim of identity theft or fraud. To ensure the protection of all involved, we are notifying customers whose information may have been exposed by this employee of the steps we are taking and what they can do to protect themselves. We are providing these customers with the opportunity to receive two years of credit-monitoring services at no charge to them," Countrywide said in statement.