Execs accused of cooking books to meet Wall Street expectations Former Gateway Inc. Chief Financial Officer (CFO) John Todd denied charges of fraud brought against him by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), his lawyer said in a statement released Friday.The SEC on Thursday filed suit in federal court in San Diego against Todd as well as former Gateway Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Jeffrey Weitzen and former Gateway Controller Robert Manza. The three are accused of cooking the company’s books to meet Wall Street expectations.“This suit is wrong and should never have been authorized,” said attorney Robert Rose of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP in a statement on behalf of Todd. The former CFO did nothing to hurt Gateway or its shareholders, but in fact improved controls at Gateway, according to the statement. Todd’s response through his attorney is similar to one that ex-CEO Weitzen issued Thursday through his attorney. Both former Gateway executives accuse the SEC of going too far in pursuing white-collar crime in corporate America and expect to be exonerated in court. The SEC has “lost its fairness and balance,” Rose said.The lawsuits against the individual former executives and a settlement with Gateway are the result of an investigation into Gateway that the SEC began in December 2000. Gateway, without admitting or denying any wrongdoing, has agreed to an order prohibiting it from any future violations of U.S. securities laws, the SEC said Thursday.Gateway replaced its top management in early 2001 and has restated its financial results for the second and third quarters of 2000, the periods in which the alleged fraud took place. Technology Industry