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Madoff's Palm Beach Estate Seized
By
Jen Chung
Published Apr 2, 2009
Modified Apr 2, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published Apr 2, 2009
Modified Apr 2, 2009
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U.S. Marshals seized the $11 million Palm Beach mansion owned by Bernard Madoff yesterday. This is the same mansion that was toilet-papered by a teen whose trust fund disappeared in the Ponzi scandal and the very same one that Ruth Madoff is trying to claim as her primary residence (yes, it can be seized). The marshals took an inventory and changed the locks, which took a long time; Marshals spokesman Barry Golden said, "There are more doors than we expected."
A Connecticut judge also "temporarily froze the assets" of Ruth Madoff, sons Mark and Andrew, and Madoff's brother, Peter Madoff, because the town of Fairfield, CT lost about $15 million it invested with funds that invested with Madoff. ABC News has details on how Madoff coached the Fairfield Greenwich Group hedge fund to talk to the SEC about Madoff's investing; Madoff told FGG Chief Risk Officer Amit Vijaygergiya, "the less you know about how we execute ... the better you are ... your position is, 'listen, Madoff has been in business for 45 years ... a well known broker. We make the assumption that he's doing everything properly.'"
Some victims are trying to force Madoff into personal bankruptcy; a lawyer representing 70 victims of the swindle said, "It’s an important step to ensure that all Madoff assets are brought before the bankruptcy court to be used for victims of this massive fraud." And the Marshals also seized Madoff's yachts, which were in Florida, and one, called "Bull," is worth $2.2 million; Golden said, "A lot of money was put into maintaining this boat." Investors, that's where your money went: For Bull's wax jobs!
Tagged
Bernard Madoff
fraud
palm beach
ponzi scheme
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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