On Friday, the SEC accused Wells Fargo of failing to turn over documents in connection with a probe into the bank's $60 billion sale of mortgage-backed securities during the financial crisis.  The SEC is looking into whether Wells made "material misrepresentations or omitted material facts" in offerings it made to investors during 2006-08. Over the weekend, the San Francisco-based bank said it will "vigorously" defend itself against a move by the Commission to seek a court order to compel it to turn over documents related to a probe of mortgage-backed securities.  In an e-mail, a bank spokesperson described the SEC action as "inappropriate and unwarranted."  The e-mail added that Wells Fargo claims it has cooperated with the SEC, and that the Commission violated a joint understanding about the remaining documents. SEC Takes Action. The SEC apparently opened Pandora's Box last Friday by asking a federal court to order Wells Fargo to turn over documents relating to its probe of the bank’s sale of $60 billion in mortgage-backed securities.  Wells had agreed to produce the documents under subpoenas dating back more than 10 years - but, according to the SEC, has failed to hand over much of the requested material. The SEC is looking into whether Wells "made material misrepresentations or omitted material facts" when it sold securities that were made up of multiple mortgage loans between September 2006 and early 2008. Wells said it would perform a due diligence review of a sample of the loans within the securities and would drop loans that didn’t meet its underwriting standards, the regulator noted. But the agency said Wells, by all appearances, didn’t take any action to drop bad loans from the rest of the securities.  Wells has not been charged with any wrongdoing related to the MBS sale in question. The bank countered the SEC statements, saying the Commission inaccurately described its conduct involving mortgage-backed securities and that no enforcement action by the agency is warranted. Stay tuned. Click for referenced story:  [NYPost, 3/26/12].