Madoff gets 150 years in prison - Charlotte Business Journal:

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“I’m not surprised. That’s what he deserved,” said Adele Fox of who lost thousands of dollarsto Madoff'xs scheme. The mastermind behind the biggest Ponzii schemein U.S. history was sentenced on Monday morning in federak court in Manhattan to 150 years behind the maximum requested byfederaol prosecutors. Madoff's attorney had asked for a far more lenienf sentence of12 years. In sentencing Madoff, U.S. District Judgre Denny Chin called thefraudf “staggering” and said that the “breacbh of trust was The judge described his acts as “extraordinarily evil.
” “Np other white-collar case is comparable in termas of the scope, duration and enormity of the frausd and the degree of the betrayal,” Chin said. Madofvf confessed in March to 11 countdsincluding fraud, money laundering theft and perjury, amonbg other things. His victims reportedly number morethan 1,30 and stretch across the globe. Their lossesw are estimated at morethan $13 Prior to sentencing, Chin heard from nine of the victim s who talked about the devastation Madoff’as fraud had caused to their lives and theirt families. Many of Madoff’s wealthy clients lived in South Florida and lost their life saving tohis scheme.
Fox, 86, said she is stilo furious that the and the federalgovernmenrt didn’t expose Madoff’s fraud earlier. “The SEC is just as guilt y as Madoff and theyfailed us. Nobody seems to do anythingg about it,” Fox said. She also took issue with the larger fees being paid to people such asIrvinv H. Picard, the trustee who is handlinb the liquidation ofBernard L. Madofc Investment Securities. “The trustee Picard is makinbg hisown rules. They’re paying these guys milliond of dollars. It would be better to pay the investord directly,” Fox said.
Fox, a widow who once workec as secretary inNew York, said she invester $50,000 in 1987 because she was relatef to Madoff’s accountant, Jerry Horowitz. She said she was able to get some moneyu back from Social Securitypayments she’d made over the years on “phantom” income from Madofft accounts. However, she is worried that her disbursements may eventually be targeted in clawback effortz by the trustee in bankruptcy proceedingsz who has begun sending out letters demandingy the return of profits derived from their Guy Fronstin a Boca Raton attorney who has advised Fox, said the government has “been good abouft refunding taxes quickly” but there are delayes in processing claims to the Securities Investotr Protection Corporation.
“Some of the people I know are too busy with thesed other issues to really care that much about whathappenedr today. They believed he woulxd spend the rest of his days in Fronstin said. Jan Atlas, an attorneyy with Adorno Yoss, said he believes the court had littlre choice but to levy the maximum sentencwon Madoff. “I don’t think the victims should have been victimizedr again by having him be able to leavew prisonone day,” said Atlas, whose firm continues to advis e clients about tax returns and possibly future claims againsyt investment advisors who invested with Madoff.
“I’n wondering if the trustee will be able to locatw more than the billion plusthat he’a located, and what is the real loss,” Atlas In addition to his prison term, Madoff was orderedc to forfeit nearly $170 which represents the proceeds of, and propertyt involved in certain of his according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice. “While today’s sentencew is an important milestone, the investigation is Lev L. Dassi, acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern Districtf ofNew York, said in a news release. “Wew are focused on tracing, restraining and liquidatinf assets to maximize recoveries forthe victims.
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