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Madoff: "I Am Deeply Sorry And Ashamed"
The moment that many of Bernard Madoff's victims have been waiting for has arrived: He has publicly described his crimes.
At the court proceeding this morning at which he pleaded guilty, Madoff declared: "I cannot adequately express how sorry I am for what I have done."
CNBC describes the scene:
As the proceeding began, Madoff asked if he could have some water.Judge Denny Chin swore Madoff in and asked him for his plea. After Madoff said he was pleading guilty, Chin explained that he would ask a series of questions before deciding whether to accept the plea.
"Mr. Madoff, you can be seated; pour yourself some water," Chin told him.
Chin went on to ask Madoff, "Do you understand parole has been abolished?" Madoff said, "Yes." Chin is due to sentence Madoff at a later date.
In his plea, Madoff made these statements:
"Your honor for many years ... I operated a ponzi scheme."
"I am grateful for this opportunity to speak" and explain that "I am deeply sorry and ashamed."
"I cannot adequately express how sorry I am for what I have done."
Madoff went on to say, "The victims of my schemes included individuals, charities, pension funds and hedge funds."
Madoff made a distinction between his investment business which was the fraud and the other businesses which he said were legit. "The other businesses were legitimate, profitable ...in all respects and those businesses were run by my brother and my sons," said Madoff.
Josh
Zachary
It's hard to believe he's sorry for what he's done, if he was conscripting people into the fraud as late as last Dec, days before he admitted the fraud.
The guy is liar. Why should we believe he's sorry? I'm betting he's still lying. Is he sorry? Probably only sorry he had no funds left to keep up the charade! Sorry he had to admit it? Sorry he's going to jail? Sorry he caused shame for himself and his family? Yup. But sorry he's crook... likely not!
March 12, 2009 11:22 AM | Reply | Permalink
True. I wonder what the odds are that the 'legit' businesses he says his family was running actually are? Even if they weren't also crooks, I'd be surprised if Madoff's grubby fingers weren't all over those entities too.
March 12, 2009 11:31 AM | Reply | Permalink
I'm sure there's a lot he's not telling. I'm guessing they tried every which way to give him a plea bargain - where he would have had to divulge co-conspirators. That he plead guilty instead shows me that he's trying to hide stuff, in hopes the rest of his family can avoid jail. I bet they're all guilty as sin!
March 12, 2009 11:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
Taking the fall just works in the movies. I'm pretty sure the gov is all over the books of his relatives. Maybe the whole family will share a ward in jail before all's said and done.
The whole thing is just crazy--what drives these people to keep doing this? I could see the motivation for doing something like this for a short time, make a buck, and get out of there before it catches up to you. But he's been milking this for, um, decades? Wow. The complete hubris of the guy. And the complete ineptitude of our government to ferret him out long ago. Plus the blindness of other financial 'gurus'--Madoff was looked up to by them.
When they say that the whole system was based on greed, well, it looks that way doesn't it? Madoff is only one example too.
March 12, 2009 12:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Precisely -- anyone truly sorry or contrite would be cooperating with investigators with or without the promise of a lighter sentence. OTOH, at his age, even if he only gets 15 years, he'll still probably die in prison. So the question becomes: Whom is he protecting? I hope the feds get after that as well.
March 12, 2009 12:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
I was thinking along similar lines. Not only was he committing fraud days before he was indicted, think about how long he had been committing fraud before he was caught. You put it in a much more dignified way than what I was thinking, which is... sorry, my ass.
March 12, 2009 12:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
"I'm sorry and deeply ashamed".
I didn't know he admitted to doing steroids.
March 12, 2009 11:41 AM | Reply | Permalink
Sorry and not cooperating to disclose where the money went. Hope the Judge sentences him to hard labor (do they still do that) and issue him a soap on a rope (100 grit), instead of the usual white collar country club facility.
March 12, 2009 11:41 AM | Reply | Permalink
Apparently if he gets 25 years or more, he'll end up in max security. I hope he does! He deserves it!
March 12, 2009 11:49 AM | Reply | Permalink
And yet, my guess is he will still be treated better in prison than the inner city kids who end up in prison for selling drugs because they don't think they have any other option. This man had all the advantages in the world. It's sickening.
March 12, 2009 12:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
Pretty thin gruel for all those who have had their lives totally thrown upside down in support of Madoff's high times living the high life.
If there was in fact any modicum of regret at all, Madoff would be doing cartwheels to assist the prosecution in unravelling this scheme. He would also be inclined to surrender all assets to join his most aggrieved victims at the same level of lifestyle to which they are now consigned due to Madoff's thievery. The fact that he does not wish to disclose where the money went - or the names of anyone else who might be responsible for these crimes - speaks a hell of a lot louder than any words from the lips of a con man thief. How disgusting! Have these crooks no shame at all?
March 12, 2009 11:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
Well said, Sleepin'!
March 12, 2009 12:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
To some and/or a relevant extent is it correct to perceive that seemingly along with Mr. Madoff that our US Legislative, Judicial and Executive Leaders and Members should also be in a proper Court of Jurisdiction Today with the similar and/or same Plea(s) and/or for adjudication, (and seemingly with numerous additional allegations including many with high crimes and misdeamoners allegations) and including for the non-prosecution of Citigroup Chairman during Enron for the same and identical concerns?
March 12, 2009 11:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
There is a speical place in hell reserved for Bernie...a man who riuned 100's of lives, hopes and dreams! He knew greed would drive his fraud and he expolited his clients but still hell awits him!
March 12, 2009 12:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
It is difficult to know how to react beyond disgust at this man. How can anyone reconcile his extreme criminal behavior with a statement of regret or remorse? I am agog at how someone like this who rides so high for so long then appears so small and pathetic and whether he is feigning contrition or not one almost wishes he were defiant and malevolent in his appearance and in what he says so it would be even easier to heap the scorn and contempt upon him that he so richly deserves.
When I consider how utterly destructive and deeply harmful were this man's actions it makes me think of how completely and utterly unfair our system of "justice" is. Millions of young men who have committed relatively petty offenses that harm the perpetrators more than anyone else get locked up immediately and given very harsh sentences or probabtion conditions that are either impossible for them to comply with or are so honerous in their requirements that their every waking moment is a hassle. Yet, this man, once discovered was allowed for months to continue living in luxury. How horrible and unfair! All of it.
March 12, 2009 12:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
The guy simply can't tell the truth, can he? Even contrition is a lie. Serial liar!
March 12, 2009 12:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Does that make him a politician or a lawyer?
If the government really was insisting that he plead to conspiracy that was bonehead. What they needed was to get him to allocute in detail as to how he'd done it (if he lies he loses the deal). Or maybe they already know but just aren't saying how...
March 12, 2009 2:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Was his bail revoked? Or will he return to "penthouse" arrest where he can listen to "Cry Me A River" on an endless loop?
March 12, 2009 1:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
bail revoked. sent to jail!
March 12, 2009 3:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
There was a very nice post somewhere where it was pointed out the brilliance of Madoff's Ponzi Scheme. Specifically he 'solved' a few of the fundamental problems associated with running this model. To wit...
* He didn't offer too fabulous a rate of return but a steady up/down market profit of 10-12%
* He limited his customer base and turned away a lot of interested folks
* A lot of his customers were banks or charities which generally are in things for the long term so there wouldn't be many withdrawals or a 'run' on his fund.
And of course he ran this scheme for the better part of two decades. Had the market not gone so south he may have continued for another ten years. What did him in was a demand by numerous investors at once for close to $8Billion in cash (likely to cover their shorts and other losses) which Madoff didn't have--and the house of cards all fell down.
Therefore one has to conclude this guy is a psychopath, has no conscience and therefore immune to the suffering of others. He's only sorry he's now headed to the slammer.
Clearly he had a lot of help and there's a lot of loot buried in offshore accounts. So until he ponies up he's still running his con. Screw him and the rest of his gang--round everybody up and seize their assets....
March 12, 2009 2:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Madoff, Sent to Jail, Seeks a 'Shawshank Redemption'
http://satiricalpolitical.com/?p=5498
March 12, 2009 3:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
He "cannot adequately express" sorrow because he has none.
Well, maybe he's sorry it all fell apart, but that's not what was called for here.
March 12, 2009 3:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Regarding the institutional investors: in the current market collapse, how many of these institutions will be found later to have fraudulently attributed other losses to investments in Madoff's scheme?
So many things spin off this possibility: "I won't rat, so you can cook your books, as long as there's money for my family," or "I can prove you knew it was a fraud, so make sure my family's taken care of."
In any case, as the larger economy unravels, and more governments want to look at more banks' books, Madoff probably figured it was only a matter of time 'til a contract was taken out on him. So he hired the best bodyguards in the world, the Secret Service and the US Marshals' Service. Forever. For free.
March 12, 2009 3:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
It sounds like a Twilight Zone or short story premise, but if the Devil offered you the life of a well-regarded millionaire until age 70 vs struggling like anyone else, would you take it?
March 12, 2009 4:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Everyone's sorry when they get caught, and usually, it is just for getting caught. If he would had gotten out of the scheme with his money, and done so undetected, he would have no regrets about it. The full text story on here was very interesting too. I can't believe he went in to such depth and detail about what all he did. While interesting, that does not make up for the people he hurt through the scandal. He deserves anything he gets.
March 12, 2009 4:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Mussolini, with the noose around his neck, announced "Mea culpa. So sorry."
And with that, they executed him, and according to the beliefs of Il Duci and his countrymen, for confessing and being contrite, he gets into heaven.
Sure hope the Jews don't have that rule...
March 12, 2009 8:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bernie's all tough and holding his mud now, but once he's been in gaol a bit, he'll be ready to talk about his transactions in detail for an extra blanket or pillow. He might give a great deal more to be segregated from the general run of inmate.
March 13, 2009 1:02 PM | Reply | Permalink