Ooops Madoff has been hiding assets

[malaise]

by signing over jewelry to relatives while under house arrest. A judge may send him to prison this afternoon. Prosecutors say he had $173M in signed checks in his office.
How can you steal $50B and not be in prison?

[KansDem]

1. Steal $50 and end up sleeping on the urine-soaked cement floor of a jail cell...

Steal $50 billion and end up sleeping in your $7 million penthouse condo.

It's the American Way...:crazy:

[mrcheerful]

9. Don't even need to steal the $50, all you need to have happen is be

accused of stealing $50, then get sent to jail then get a court appointed lawyer who will then convince you that your case is un winnable so take a plea bargain. You cop the plea and then the judge decides to make an example out of you, throws out the plea bargain and sentences you to 2 to 15 years in prison, wink wink, the judge is only sending you to prison for a year then you will be paroled out.

You sit in a cell for a year go in front of the parole board who then say we don't believe your rehabilitated see you in a year. this goes on every year for 13 years, because you been an ideal prisoner you get your good behavior time because your maxing out in 2 years anyhow so they might as well let you go now without any supervision. Now mind you if you get into any fights, like when Bubba gave you that candy bar and because you took the candy bar you owe him sexual favors, only you either didn't know that or you decide hey I don't want Bubba putting any part of his anatomy in my anatomy, Bubba decides to force you to comply to the aggreement, you defend yourself and lose the good behavior time, so then you will do 15 years.

Now folks like Maddof do not see that prison system, they go to the resort prisons that republicons show on TV and try to pass off as the american soft on crime prisons the democrats support. Not only are they protected from people like Bubba, but they get all kinds of perks like decent food and health care and dental care and the 50" TV in their cell.

[Horse with no Name]

15. A friend of mines brother is STILL in jail in Alabama

You can guess how long he has been there.
His crime?
He stole an 8-track player out of a car.

[malaise]

19. Meanwhile Bernie is posting away

http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/07/news/newsmakers/madoff/?postversion=2009010722

[malaise]

14. Isn't that the truth

Madoff should be in jail but so should Bush, Cheney and Rove.

[CTyankee]

2. Well, that was stupid of him.

He should have known damn well that hiding assets is the FIRST thing the authorities look for in cases such as these.

Not smart, Bernie...

[aquart]

4. Hey, he talked them into house arrest...

[KamaAina]

3. $173 *million*?

Chump change! Take him to small claims court!

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[gratuitous]

5. That's Madoff's lawyer's argument

These little baubles represent very little value in relation to the level of fabulous wealth Mr. Madoff current enjoys, and these "gifts" are mere bagatelles, hardly worthy of the notice of the authorities or the court.

[malaise]

16. Check this one

http://uk.reuters.com/article/burningIssues/idUKTRE5075LR20090108
<snip>
Disgraced U.S. financier Bernard Madoff moved nearly $160 million of his own assets to his British-based firm in 2007, according to company accounts and filings obtained by Reuters on Thursday.

Madoff, accused by U.S. authorities of running a Ponzi scheme for many years in a fraud worth up to $50 billion, moved the assets via the allotment of two sets of new shares in Madoff Securities International Ltd, a British firm he controlled.

In October 2007, Madoff bought 49.9 million new 100 pence shares in the British firm for 49.9 million pounds, the documents showed, the equivalent of about $100 million at the time and about $75 million at Thursday's exchange rate.

In addition, the previous month he also received 6.25 million new $10 shares as payment for terminating a $62.5 million loan he had made to the British firm in 2000.

and this
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--britain-madoffsca0108jan08,0,3912741.story
<snip>
Britain's Serious Fraud Office opened an investigation into the British business operations of Bernard Madoff on Thursday, raising the prospect that the alleged Wall Street fraudster could face criminal charges here.

The fraud office, which is cooperating with its U.S. counterparts, said its investigation would focus on British victims and "any criminal offenses that might have been committed in the U.K."

Responding to criticisms that it has moved too slowly in the past against illegal activity in London's huge financial sector, the agency said the inquiry showed its "new, faster approach to tackling fraud."

"The public say they want us to take early action, and this is what we are doing," fraud office director Richard Alderman said in a statement. "We will work closely with other law enforcement agencies to discover the truth behind the collapse of these huge financial structures."

[malaise]

17. More here

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=asQxW8FREEPw&refer=home
<snip>
Investigators searching the office desk of Bernard Madoff after his arrest found about 100 signed checks, totaling about $173 million, ready to be sent to family, friends, and employees, prosecutors said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Litt in Manhattan made the disclosure in a letter submitted today to U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald Ellis, as part of a renewed request for the judge to jail Madoff prior to his trial. Ellis plans to rule on the government’s request tomorrow or on Jan. 12, according to the judge’s law clerk, who declined to be named. No court hearing is currently scheduled.

Prosecutors have previously disclosed that Madoff, before his Dec. 11 arrest, had said he wanted to transfer $200 million to $300 million of his investors’ money to “selected family, friends, and employees.” Litt’s letter today indicates that Madoff was ready to send the money out.

“The only thing that prevented the defendant from executing his plan to dissipate those assets was his arrest by the FBI on Dec. 11,” Litt wrote in his letter.
----------------
A crook to the end.

[Renew Deal]

6. The judges are idiots

He should have been in prison in the first place. The guy robbed the needy. A street thug would be in prison far faster for far less.

[GodlessBiker]

7. The level of money involved suggests a flight risk, IMHO.

It would have been easy for him to stash some of it in far away places, out of reach of US authorities.

[mod mom]

18. or a death risk. Think Ken Lay and his protected assets after his "death"

[spanone]

8. steal five dollars from the smart mart and you can do hard time

[Vinca]

10. The real question is . . .

how can I get my address to Bernie? I'd be happy to hold onto a few gems and jewels for safekeeping.:sarcasm:

[specimenfred1984]

11. Madoff would be killed in short time or the amount of bribery for his life...

going on would end up in the deaths of a lot of surrounding prisoners. Chimp did that to Saddam, threw him into a "normal" judicial system and we all see what happened there, SCHWINGGGGG.

[corpseratemedia]

12. Only billionaire thieves don't go to jail

they get to keep thieving

what did the "authorities" think he'd do?

[rvablue]

13. I'm so fatigued with what these rich crooks get away with, had he stolen a CD player

from WalMart he'd be behind bars right now.

No, he just ruined thousands if not more lives, and he gets to lounge around his penthouse and ship diamonds off to his relatives (who should now be arrested for conspiracy)

Put him behind bars NOW! And if the judge rules against it, then it's time to investigate that B-word, too.

SO.SICK.OF.THE.DOUBLE.STANDARD.