Madoff Slammed With 150-Year Sentence

Convicted Scam Artist Gets Maximum Sentence; Says He'll Live With "Torment For The Rest Of My Life"

(CBS/ AP)  Last Updated 6:34 p.m. EDT

Bernard Madoff, the former Wall Street financier that pleaded guilty to defrauding clients out of billions in an unprecedented Ponzi scheme, was sentenced to 150 years in prison Monday.

Applause broke out in the crowded Manhattan courtroom after U.S. District Judge Denny Chin issued the maximum sentence to the 71-year-old defendant, who said he sought no forgiveness and knew he must live "with this pain, this torment, for the rest of my life."

Chin rejected a request by Madoff's lawyer for leniency and said he disagreed that victims of the fraud were seeking mob vengeance.

"Here the message must be sent that Mr. Madoff's crimes were extraordinarily evil and that this kind of manipulation of the system is not just a bloodless crime that takes place on paper, but one instead that takes a staggering toll," Chin said.

Transcript of Madoff sentencing

The judge said the estimate that Madoff has cost his victims more than $13 billion was conservative because it did not include money from feeder funds.

"Objectively speaking, the fraud here was staggering," he said.

Before Chin announced the sentence, Madoff, wearing a dark suit, white shirt and a tie, apologized to the victims and his family.

"I cannot offer you an excuse for my behavior," he said. "How do you excuse lying to your brother and your two sons? How do you excuse lying and deceiving a wife who stood by you for fifty years and still does?"

"I have left a legacy of shame to my family and grandchildren," he added.

Madoff repeated earlier statements that he thought he would be able to get out the scheme once started but could not.

"The harder I tried, the deeper I dug myself into a hole," he said.

At one point during his statement, Madoff turned to the victims present and said: "I am sorry."

Madoff also expects "to live out his years in prison," his lawyer said.

He also sat and listened as emotional witnesses described how he spoiled their security. One called him a "beast" and another a "psychopath," reports CBS News chief investigative reporter Armen Keteyian. Another stated: "I only hope his prison sentence is long enough that his jail cell becomes his coffin."

After the sentencing, outside the court victims had mixed reactions, reports Keteyian.

"I'm left with fear," said Miriam Siegman.

"He's an equal opportunity destroyer," said Cheryl Weinstein.

Said Maureen Ebel: "I think justice was done today for Mr. Madoff."

Keteyian reports that 91-year-old Ian Thiermann, who had to take a job at a grocery store in California after losing $700,000 to Madoff, had this reaction: "It maybe makes some people feel better; it doesn't make me feel one ounce better."

Madoff's lawyers had asked the judge for a 12-year sentence and the federal probation office recommended 50 years.

After the sentencing, Bernard Madoff's wife Ruth broker her silence, saying in a statement that she feels "betrayed and confused" by her husband's multibillion fraud scheme.

Complete Bernard Madoff coverage:

Madoff Sentenced To 150 Years In Prison
Ruth Madoff: "Embarrassed And Ashamed"
Madoff's Fraud: All In The Family?
Transcript of Madoff Sentencing
Analysis: 150-Year Sentence "Grossly Unfair"
Court Sketches: Madoff Sentencing

The severity of the sentence caught some experts off guard.

"I am shocked by this ruling-- and I suspect that many legal experts are as well," said CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen. "The sentence is completely disproportionate to what other major white-collar criminals had received in recent years in fraud cases and I'm not sure that the level of the fraud, even the scope of it, justifies that."

"I think it's more symbolic than anything else because as a practical matter Madoff was going to die in prison anyway whether he got 50 years or 100 or 150 or even 25. Clearly the judge wanted to send a message to other would-be swindlers out there and also to recognize the enormity of the crime."

It will be interesting "whether his attorneys appeal this harsh sentence on grounds that it violates their client's constitutional rights to be protected from disproportionate punishment," Cohen said.

The jailed Madoff already has taken a severe financial hit: Last week, a judge issued a preliminary $171 billion forfeiture order stripping Madoff of all his personal property, including real estate, investments, and $80 million in assets his wife Ruth had claimed were hers. The order left her with $2.5 million.

The terms require the Madoffs to sell a $7 million Manhattan apartment where Ruth Madoff still lives. An $11 million estate in Palm Beach, Fla., a $4 million home in Montauk and a $2.2 million boat will be put on the market as well.

Before Madoff became a symbol of Wall Street greed, he had earned a reputation as a trusted money manager with a Midas touch. Even as the market fluctuated, clients of his secretive investment advisory business - from Florida retirees to celebrities such as Steven Spielberg, actor Kevin Bacon and Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax - for decades enjoyed steady double-digit returns.

But late last year, Madoff made a dramatic confession: Authorities say he pulled his sons aside and told them it was "all just one big lie."

Madoff pleaded guilty in March to securities fraud and other charges, saying he was "deeply sorry and ashamed." He insisted that he acted alone, describing a separate wholesale stock-trading firm run by his sons and brother as honest and legitimate.

Aside from an accountant accused of cooking Madoff's books, no one else has been criminally charged. But the family, including his wife, and brokerage firms who recruited investors have come under intense scrutiny by the FBI, regulators and a court-appointed trustee overseeing the liquidation of Madoff's assets.

The trustee and prosecutors have sought to go after assets to compensate thousands of burned victims who have filed claims against Madoff. How much is available to pay them remains unknown, though it's expected to be only a fraction of the astronomical losses associated with the fraud.

The $171 billion forfeiture figure used by prosecutors merely mirrors the amount they estimate that, over decades, "flowed into the principal account to perpetrate the Ponzi scheme." The statements sent to investors showing their accounts were worth as much as $65 billion were fiction.

The investigation has found that in reality, Madoff never made any investments, instead using the money from new investors to pay returns to existing clients - and to finance a lavish lifestyle for his family.

In bankruptcy filings, Trustee Irving Picard say family members "used customers accounts as though they were their own," putting Madoff's maid, boat captain and house-sitter in Florida on the company payroll and paying nearly $1 million in fees at high-end golf clubs on Long Island and in Florida.

Picard has sought to reclaim ill-gotten gains by freezing Madoff's business bank accounts and selling legitimate portions of his firm. (Its season tickets for the Mets went for $38,100.) He's also sued big money managers and investors for billions of dollars, claiming they were Madoff cronies who also cashed in on the fraud.

The defendants include leading philanthropists Stanley Chais and Jeffry Picower - from whom Picard is seeking at least $5.1 billion alleged to have come out of victims' pockets - and hedge fund manager J. Ezra Merkin. All have denied any wrongdoing.

[skydrifter1]

The sentence reeks ofg "appeal." By the time they get it back into court, Bernie will be dead of natural causes.

The key question goes to where the ripped off money was deposited.

[sam-kiley]

bonjour,
150 ans rien que ça eh bien je luisouhaite du courage, il aura tut le temps de réfléchir aisémment, etre je cite.. désolé triste ou encore honteux,la belle affaire.. il aura le temps de l'etre là ou il séjournera désormais..au revoir.

[ahrats]

Bernie was not the only one who profited from this scheme. His family the sell-out SEC investigator now a family member, all made-out on the deal and they get to keep the money. The SEC is still a joke and any employee who missed what was in front of them, who would want them still at the SEC?, but there still there. So everyone knows this will happen again because the SEC is in bed with the rich investors so they can bilk monry out of the average investor. THE STOCK MARKET IS A RIGGED GAME, JUST LIKE ANY GAME AT CASINO'S.

[blitzder]

If you think justice is served, forget it, no REAL justice yet. Maddoff is just the tip of the iceberg. They should go after BUSh/CHENEY and their multitudes of cronies who plundered the US treasury, and brought the economy of the country to its KNEES.

Hope someone in Washington has the backbone to investigate the massive scams that have been covered up for the last 8 years.

[Heartlight]

I'm wondering if Mrs. Madoff is going to replenish Bernie's canteen account? lol My brother lost over $250,000.00 of his life's savings because of this man. Wherever he's going, it's not the Breakers!

[FrankDenise]

I can go on and on here as well but what about this story...A middle class worker who had his annuity and pension invested through his union...He had no control over who his union invested with and turns around now and is out of all that money that was invested over the last 14 years.....I know because this is my story.....Iam a union carpenter from NY who had his money robbed from this ponzi scheme as well.....Now the union is not telling us anything and I doubt we will ever get our money back..I beleive the United States Government should be responsible for this long term scheme..Are you telling me no one picked up on this after all this time??????But you and me would have a toothcomb shoved up our as* if something looked funny with our finances....It is just another stroke job from our wonderful leaders in Washington..It is a real disgrace..And America has the nerve to want to fix the rest of the world and teach them democracy..America is the worst of them all..Greedy ****************..May they all go to hell in a handbag....I cant even say anymore because what is the sense..We live in a world were money and greed is what will lead to our demise..Guarenteed...God Help Us All

[bradkt1]

Just throw away the key on this guy. He ruined a lot of lives so he could live in luxury. If you look at the nature of his crime, he never made any investments on behalf of his clients...he just stole their money. This went on for years. He didn't cooperate fully with the feds and there was no reason for the Judge to show him any mercy. It was absolutely correct to slam him with the maximum sentence.

[the74blaster]

The only problem I have with this is where are the trails and charges for the others who have done the same?

Its time we string up the other high rollers who have been ripping us off. Madeoff should only be the beginning for these parasites!

When is the law going to start arresting and charging those who have been gouging us with inflating energy prices, you know Enron!

[chengkeqi]

I am chinese,so reading CBS news is to improve my English skill.Is there anyone can help me to improve my English skill?

[faylabouiver]

chengkeqi, I would be willing to help you. God bless.

[Home-of-the-Slaves]

Lets put this into light. Stallworth gets 30 days for killing a man and everyone is cheering because Madoff gets 150 years for taking so toys away from a bunch of trust fund babies??? What have you all become??? Boo Hoo If you beat in the markets and you lose too bad you should have known better no one needs to go to jail because some rich snobs lost a little money. I guess money is more important then human life!! The worst part is half of you will go to Praise God on Sat. or Sun. and think your good people. Get a grip. The man didn't kill anyone he just took thier money. Half the people he took the money from steal from us everyday of our lives and they don't go to jail for it!! Even our own government steals from us and we pay them to do that. Live and Let Live!! This just goes to prove that our goverment only works for the rich the rest of us mean nothing!! I guess we should be thankful if they don't lock us up for being too poor. O thats right there are millions of people in jail for that too. The Land Of The Laws and the Home of the Slaves. O no they lost their house!! Ha least they had a house!!

[armyoftwelve]

This guy is in his 70's....I wouldn't say he was "slammed" with a 150 year sentence. He won't live to see more than 20 of those years.

Every penny this guy has left must be taken from him...even his social security payments should be garnished.

[faylabouiver]

dwilson59--- No law against being rich, I worked very hard for every cent I have, if you don't like the rich then GET OVER IT!!!!!!!!!!.

[dwilson59]

Cant he just blame it on Turbo Tax?

[dwilson59]

I say give him 30 days in Jail and let him work for the FDIC he will fit in with all of his buddys

[stuart2021]

I am glad you are posting my post from June 16 about extremists like yourself. Thanks for the free advertising!

[chrobrego-2009]

Rape a child and get six years.

Murder someone in cold blood and get 7-8 years.

Pick the pocket of the rich who control this country and get 150 years.

This sentence really shows who is boss in this country, and it's not the average citizen.

[mahdeealoo]

Let's see...65 billion dollars divided by 150 years and put on top of that all of the ruined lives and depleted life savings. Is that enough? And his wife walks around with almost 3 million in her pocket book. Hmmmmmmm.

[saturn05]

Believe me I think this guy should be punished harshly, but 150 years. Rapists and murderers don't even get that much.

[apple2pie]

Madoff says he'll live in "torment"...yah..if he had a conscience in the first place he never would have done his thievery. He's just going to be chuckling for all the years he got the best of people. Sadness because you got caught Bernie doesn't count.

[Haw_Haw]

Well I finally had to take the 30 seconds and sign up for THIS site, anyway. I read most of the pinhead opinions, and mine is no different. Well except for the fact that this guy is my hero! Instead of thinking about all the bad things he did, think about all the things he proved! Like how the government doesn?t do its job, that you are indoctrinated from birth and what you believe has nothing to do with what the person who is taking your money believes. Although if he can get you to believe that he believes the same things you do it just makes his job easier. That a persons intelligence is measured by the size of their account, what they drive where they live , who lives where THEY tell them too, etc., and not on their abilities. Although on the surface he had them both, but I have no sympathy for someone who doesn?t know that if it sounds too good to be true it usually is. This guy takes money from people who had more money than the jokes like us who write on this board and yet here we sit. And I certainly have no sympathy for cry baby millionaires who ?risked? their money for an outrageous amount of returns. The greedy hogs get be slaughtered. Don?t forget people BEGGED this guy, BEGGED for him take them on! I think it?s great! A PERFECT sign of the times!!

Everyone wants to blame a president who was elected through an in-direct election and you haven?t a clue. There are people who tell people to build pyramids and there are the weak, useless, numbered pyramid builders.

Signed a piggy who will stay a piggy, and I had hog troughs placed in front of me.

Oh and 150 years, I mean if that?s not a joke within itself I don?t know what is! That guy needs to be picking up
Dog
S
H
I
T
from the people who DON?T pick up after their dogs, in the hot sun at noon with his bare hands. Just so you don?t think I think he SHOULDN?T be punished on top of? his, ROTFLMFAO, cough CHOKE CHOKE, nope still alive, lol, ONE 00 and fifty, cough cough, year JOKE of a sentence. Ahhhh, sigh o? times!

[lloydbest1]

"...This guy takes money from people who had more money than the jokes like us who write on this board and yet here we sit. And I certainly have no sympathy for cry baby millionaires who ?risked? their money for an outrageous amount of returns. The greedy hogs get [deserve to?] be slaughtered...."

Greed is sometimes it's own punishment and I agree the filthy rich and "crybaby" millionaires deserve no more than comtempt and stigmitization but......
Many lower and middle income people, such as you and I (tho'I didn't touch Madoff - "too good to be true") also lost big time. Folks whose employers threw in some or all of their pension monies with Madoff are now without anything for retirement. They may not have contributed but counted on the good faith of the investment industry.
Going broke because "Sh*t happens" as in my example is one thing. Sh*t does, indeed, happen and I am now trying to recover. BUT going broke because of intentional treachery on the part of a psychopathic rip-off artist whom you trusted with your money is another altogether.

See my post immediately previous to yours and you will also see that 150 years, long though it may be, is not anywhere nearly sufficient.