The names of some 20 Bronx clients who allegedly lost money investing with Bernard Madoff have been made public in a U.S. Bankruptcy Court filing Wednesday.
Several thousand people have been named as victims of Madoff?s alleged Ponzi scheme, including the financier?s relatives, celebrities and charitable institutions. The customers include prominent people and institutions that already had been publicly revealed, such as the Wilpon family, owner of the New York Mets.
Federal prosecutors claim Madoff had been paying off his earlier investors using funds from subsequent clients to maintain the illusion of profit. However, when the financial crisis set in, many investors started pulling their money out, thus leading to the collapse of Madoff?s financial pyramid. When the alleged scheme was revealed, Madoff?s investors discovered they lost a total of $50 billion.
Madoff has not been indicted. He remains under house arrest at his penthouse on the Upper East Side in Manhattan, and his assets have been frozen.
Associated Press contributed to this article.
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