NEW YORK – Bernie Madoff, whose Ponzi scheme caused former New York Mets owners to be embroiled in a $ 1 billion lawsuit, died in prison at age 82.
Madoff burned thousands of investors, outperformed regulators and received a 150-year prison sentence. He died of natural causes at the Federal Medical Center in Butner, North Carolina.
Among its victims were director Steven Spielberg, actor Kevin Bacon and Nobel Peace Prize winner and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel. But he also had links to sports figures. Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax was a customer. And former Mets owners Fred Wilpon, Jeff Wilpon and Saul Katz were the main investors. His participation changed the trajectory of the franchise.
Wilpon and Katz had more than 500 accounts with Madoff and were sued for $ 1 billion by the administrator for victims who claimed they knew, or should have known, of fraudulent returns from Madoff’s scheme, according to the New York Times.
Madoff was known for his double-digit returns and his spread. Koufax was a friend of Wilpon in high school. Former Mets outfielder Tim Teufel, former Philadelphia Eagles owner Norman Braman and former New York Islanders player Bob Nystrom also invested with Madoff.
In addition, the Mets Limited Partnership, the New York Mets Foundation, and the Brooklyn Baseball Company (the company that owns the minor league Brooklyn Cyclones) had accounts in Madoff.
While Madoff did business with the rich and famous, he also disappointed investors and daily charities. He was so insulted that he had to wear a bulletproof vest to the courts.
Madoff admitted to prosecutors that he lost more than $ 50 billion belonging to investors.
The collapse of its Ponzi scheme drastically affected the Mets’ finances, forcing the Wilpons to take out $ 65 million in loans to meet payroll, including $ 25 million from other baseball owners. Previously, the team negotiated complicated contracts that postponed the money, including the famous Bobby Bonilla deal, which pays $ 1 million a year to the retired retiree until 2035 to invest money with Madoff.
“Bernie was part of the Mets’ business plan, ”a former employee of the team told The New York Times in 2011.
The consequences reduced the team’s payroll, from $ 140 million in 2011 to $ 95 million in 2012 and $ 85 million in 2014, as salaries increased throughout the game. Subsequently, the Wilpons lost power and their financial participation in the team.
Current Mets owner Steve Cohen bought a $ 20 million stake in the Mets after the collapse of Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, which eventually bought majority ownership of the franchise from the Wilpon and Katz families in September. of 2020.
Madoff pleaded guilty in March 2009 to securities fraud and other charges. In June 2009, a judge ordered a $ 171 billion confiscation order that removed Madoff from all of his personal property, including real estate, investments and $ 80 million in assets.
The scandal also caused a personal toll on Madoff’s family: one of his sons, Mark, killed himself on the second anniversary of his father’s arrest in 2010. And Madoff’s brother, Peter, who helped running the business, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2012, despite claiming to be in the dark about his brother’s misdeeds.
Madoff’s other son, Andrew, died of cancer at age 48. Madoff’s wife, Ruth, is still alive.
The information from The Associated Press was used in this report.