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Accused swindler Bernard Madoff (bottom) enters the Manhattan federal court house in New York on March 12, 2009 - Source: Reuters -
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Bernard Madoff pleaded guilty to charges he orchestrated the
biggest financial swindle in Wall Street history and was ordered to
jail to await a sentence that could last the rest of his
life.
"I cannot adequately express how sorry I am for what I have done,"
the gray-haired 70-year-old Madoff said grimly as he stood in a
gray suit in Manhattan federal court and pleaded guilty to 11
criminal charges.
Presiding Judge Denny Chin ordered him remanded to jail until his
sentencing on June 16.
"He has incentive to flee, he has means to flee, and he is a
risk of flight," Chin said.
Madoff was handcuffed and led out of court by US marshals.
In a hearing that lasted more than an hour, Madoff, the disgraced
money manager and former NASDAQ stock market chairman, described a
long-running scheme he knew from the beginning was criminal and
wrong but hoped would end shortly.
As he become more deeply engaged in the fraud, "I realized that my
arrest and this day would inevitably come," he said in court where
victims of his Ponzi scheme later spoke.
"I am painfully aware that I have deeply hurt many, many people,"
including his family, friends and associates, Madoff said.
Madoff's role in the scheme, which took in as much as $126 billion
over two decades before the 2008 market meltdown, could land him in
prison for the rest of his life.
Speaking for 10 minutes, Madoff said he was grateful for the
opportunity to address the court and deeply sorry and ashamed of
his actions.
Madoff, who stood to the left of his lawyer, hands draped at his
side, admitted to securities fraud, investment adviser fraud, mail
fraud, wire fraud, three counts of money laundering, false
statements, perjury, false filings with the US Securities and
Exchange Commission and theft from an employee benefit plan.
His investors included hedge funds, banks, Jewish charities, the
wealthy, and small individual investors in North and South America
and Europe. The magnitude of the fraud shocked the public and drew
demands for stricter regulations.
One investor in court urged the judge to reject the plea, saying
that Madoff should be put on trial for his crimes.
She told the court, "We can show all crimes, including crimes of
greed, can be dissected, ruled upon and punished, and we can
demonstrate that we are a country that can learn from our
mistakes."
Chin, however, accepted the guilty plea, saying the proceedings in
his court would accomplish the same goals.
Prosecutors, who want Madoff to forfeit all of the money and
property that can be traced back to the alleged fraud, a sum it
estimated at more than $332.5 billion, have said the investigation
is ongoing, but no other individuals have been charged.
"A lot of resources are being expended both to find assets and to
find anyone else who may be responsible for this fraud," Assistant
US Attorney Marc Litt said.
