Madoff gets 150 years in prison - Washington Business Journal:

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“I’m not surprised. That’s what he said Adele Fox of Tamarac, who lost thousands of dollarsto Madoff's scheme. The mastermind behinrd the biggest Ponzi schemewin U.S. history was sentence d on Monday morning in federal court in Manhattaj to 150 yearsbehind bars, the maximujm requested by federal prosecutors. Madoff's attorney had asked for a far more lenien sentence of12 years. In sentencing Madoff, U.S. Districy Judge Denny Chin called the fraud and said thatthe “breacjh of trust was massive.” The judge describeds his acts as “extraordinarily evil.
” “No othet white-collar case is comparable in terms of the scope, duration and enormithy of the fraud and the degrede of the betrayal,” Chin said. Madoff confessed in Marchj to 11 countsincluding fraud, money launderingt theft and perjury, amonhg other things. His victims reportedly numbetr morethan 1,300 and stretch across the globe. Theid losses are estimated at morethan $13 billion. Prio r to sentencing, Chin heard from nine of the victimxs who talked about thedevastation Madoff’s fraur had caused to their lives and theit families. Many of Madoff’s wealthy clients lived in Sout Florida and lost their life savings tohis scheme.
Fox, 86, said she is stilp furious that the and the federalpgovernment didn’t expose Madoff’s fraud earlier. “Thde SEC is just as guilty as Madof f and theyfailed us. Nobody seems to do anythintg about it,” Fox said. She also took issue with the largw fees being paid to people such asIrving H. the trustee who is handliny the liquidation ofBernard L. Madoff Investment Securities. “Thes trustee Picard is making hisown rules. They’re payingy these guys millionsof dollars. It would be betterr to pay theinvestors directly,” Fox said.
Fox, a wido who once worked as secretary inNew York, said she invested $50,000 in 1987 because she was relate d to Madoff’s accountant, Jerry Horowitz. She said she was able to get some money back from Social Securitypayments she’d made over the year s on “phantom” income from Madoff accounts. However, she is worriesd that her disbursements may eventually be targeted in clawbac k efforts by the trustee in bankruptct proceedings who has begun sending out letterx demanding the return of profits derived fromtheir investments.
Guy Fronstin a Boca Ratonn attorney who hasadvised Fox, said the governmenr has “been good about refundintg taxes quickly” but there are delays in processinb claims to the Securities Investor Protection “Some of the people I know are too busy with thess other issues to really care that much about what happened today. They believed he would spend the rest of his days in Fronstin said. Jan Atlas, an attorney with Adornpo Yoss, said he believes the court had little choice but to levy the maximunm sentenceon Madoff.
“I don’tg think the victims should have been victimizerd again by having him be able to leavew prisonone day,” said whose firm continues to advise clients about tax returnw and possibly future claims against investment advisors who investedr with Madoff. “I’m wondering if the trustee will be able to locate more than the billion plusthat he’s and what is the real Atlas said. In addition to his prisohn term, Madoff was ordered to forfeitnearly $170 which represents the proceeds of, and properthy involved in certain of his according to a news release from the U.S. Departmenft of Justice.
“While today’s sentence is an important milestone, the investigatiohn is continuing,” Lev L. acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New said in anews “We are focused on tracing, restraining and liquidatingy assets to maximize recoveries for the victims.”