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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Fraudster Madoff gets 150 years | Fraudster Madoff gets 150 years |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Bernard Madoff has been given the maximum prison sentence of 150 years for masterminding a massive fraud that robbed investors of $65bn (£40bn). | Bernard Madoff has been given the maximum prison sentence of 150 years for masterminding a massive fraud that robbed investors of $65bn (£40bn). |
| The sentencing was greeted with cheers and applause in the courtroom, while US District Judge Denny Chin described the crime as "staggering". | |
| Madoff's lawyer had sought a more lenient sentence of 12 years. | Madoff's lawyer had sought a more lenient sentence of 12 years. |
| The sentence came after the court had heard emotional statements from a number of Madoff's victims. | The sentence came after the court had heard emotional statements from a number of Madoff's victims. |
| Judge Chin gave Madoff the maximum sentence on all 11 charges, which included securities fraud and money laundering. | |
| He said "the breach of trust was massive". | He said "the breach of trust was massive". |
| 'Legacy of shame' | 'Legacy of shame' |
| Before the sentencing, Madoff apologised for the "legacy of shame" he had brought on his family and the industry. | Before the sentencing, Madoff apologised for the "legacy of shame" he had brought on his family and the industry. |
| He turned directly to those in court who had been affected and said he was sorry. One person who lost money broke down in tears in court while giving evidence. | He turned directly to those in court who had been affected and said he was sorry. One person who lost money broke down in tears in court while giving evidence. |
| "Life has been a living hell. It feels like the nightmare we can't wake from," said Carla Hirshhorn. | "Life has been a living hell. It feels like the nightmare we can't wake from," said Carla Hirshhorn. |
| "May your jail cell be your coffin," Michael Schwartz told Madoff. | "May your jail cell be your coffin," Michael Schwartz told Madoff. |
| The BBC's North America Business Correspondent Michelle Fleury said the length of the sentence was unexpected. | |
| Victims would be pleased, she said, but this wasn't the end for them as they are still trying to recover some of their money. | |
| Thousands defrauded | |
| Bernard Madoff admitted defrauding thousands of investors in a Ponzi scheme which he said had been running since the early 1990s. | |
| Madoff started his financial career aged 22 with $5,000 from money made from summer holiday jobs such as working as a garden sprinkler installer in New York. | |
| He then set up Bernard L Madoff Investment Securities in 1960. | |
| His firm became one of the largest market-makers - matching buyers and sellers of stocks - and Madoff served as chairman of the Nasdaq stock exchange. | |
| Madoff's firm was investigated eight times by the US Securities and Exchange Commission over the past 16 years, because it made exceptional returns. | |
| But it was the global recession which effectively prompted Madoff's demise as investors, hit by the downturn, tried to withdraw about $7bn from his funds and he could not find the money to cover it. | |
| The list of Madoff's victims includes film director Steven Spielberg's charitable foundation, Wunderkinder. | |
| UK banks were also among the victims with HSBC Holdings saying it had exposure of around $1bn. Other corporate victims were Royal Bank of Scotland and Man Group and Japan's Nomura Holdings. | |
| But it is not just the elite and large firms who were victims of the fraud. | |
| School teachers, farmers, mechanics and many others have also lost money. |