MADOFF, AN AMERICAN 419 CRIMINAL MASTERMIND!

The saga of the mother of all criminal frauds, involving a ponzi scheme wherein over $50 billion dollars was swindled from investors is gradually drawing to a close. The criminal fraudster, Mr. Bernard Madoff is going away for good and for a very very long time indeed; he may have to reincarnate to complete his possible 150 years prison sentence? This will be in addition to paying fine, restitution and forfeiture of his ill-gotten assets. Madoff pled guilty to eleven count criminal charge including securities fraud and perjury, today March 12, 2009 and was marched straight to jail to await sentence on June 16, 2009.

As a convict, Bernard Madoff had his bail immediately revoked and was taken into custody in handcuffs. In revoking his $10million dollars bail, United States District Judge Denny Chin said Madoff had the means to flee and an incentive to do so because of his age. However, Icheoku believes that the remand in custody is to primarily protect him from himself; remember Ken Lay of Enron died in suspicious circumstances before sentencing, which led to some school of thought believing he committed suicide to save his financial empire for his family? At 70 plus years old, Bernard Madoff is a good candidate for suicide, as many consider this option as more edifying rather than pine away in prison to his eventual death? Icheoku says, Bernard Madoff is now the poster-boy of the Wall Street greed and grim which induced the present economic and financial meltdown.

Most of Madoff's victims were Jewish and Jewish charities, which trusted him because he is one of them. These victims included individuals, trusts, pension funds, hedge funds and nonprofit organizations. The scheme succeeded in wiping out life savings, ruined charities and foundations; and apparently pushed at least two investors to commit suicide - one by slitting his wrists and the other by jumping in front of a moving train. Icheoku says, the ghosts of these suicides will hunt Madoff's 6x6 prison cell until he either runs amok or takes his own life; our prediction is that he will not live out his life but will meet a tragic end!

Like the notorious Nigerian 419 scheme, Madoff collected investors money under the false pretence that he was investing same in high yield return ventures; but instead, it was a Ponzi scheme (pyramid) in which early investors are paid off with money taken in from later ones. In his own bone-chilling confessional allocutus in court following his guilty plea, Madoff said in part, "When I began the Ponzi scheme I believed it would end shortly and I would be able to extricate myself and my clients from the scheme. However, this proved difficult, and ultimately impossible, and as the years went by I realized that my arrest and this day would inevitably come. I operated a Ponzi scheme through the investment advisory side of my business, Bernard L. Madoff Securities LLC, which was located here in Manhattan, New York at 885 Third Avenue. I am painfully aware that I have deeply hurt many, many people, including the members of my family, my closest friends, business associates and the thousands of clients who gave me their money. I cannot adequately express how sorry I am for what I have done. I am here today to accept responsibility for my crimes by pleading guilty and, with this plea allocution, explain the means by which I carried out and concealed my fraud". He added, "Your Honor, I hope I have conveyed with some particularity in my own words, the crimes I committed and the means by which I committed them. Thank you". (For the full alocutus, click the link at the bottom).

Icheoku says, the moral of this case is principally two-fold:- whenever something sounds too good to be true, watch out; and also nepotism is a social malady afflicting mankind. The promised returns on investment by Madoff was rather too grandiose to make any prudent financial sense but greed possibly drove some of these investors over the Madoff's cliff?

Also many of the Jewish victims possibly invested in Madoff's scheme because he is one of their own; but unfortunately their trust was misplaced as this particular Jew turned out to be a criminal. "Our own", "our own syndrome" practised by many races in this world should be stopped as the whole mankind is similarly yoked in this one world order. We should encourage diversity so that together we shall all either swim or sink as one; - gain or lose in a shared proportion? Were the funds spread out to various investment portfolios, possibly it could have guarded against such a Bernard Madoff's rip-off? Be that as it may, our prayer is that no additional victim takes his or her life as a result of this financial catastrophe; and that some of the swindled funds may eventually be recovered.

As for convict Bernard Madoff, Icheoku hopes your new 6x6 prison-cell will be as comfortable as your $7 million dollars Upper East Side penthouse? We wish you a happy extended stay in the big house!

Bernard Madoff's statement in court - In Depth with The Post ...