The founder and former chief executive of Vitesse Semiconductor Corp , Louis Tomasetta, and former executive vice president Eugene Hovanec have been indicted for securities fraud, the U.S. Justice Department said on Friday.

They were also accused of making false entries in the books and records of the company, of making false filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and of conspiracy for a scheme to manipulate the company's financial statements.

(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)

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