5 Bernie Madoff Employees Convicted Of Fraud

Five of Bernie Madoff’s former employees, including his longtime secretary, were convicted Monday on fraud charges after a six month trial in a New York federal court, the Associated Press reports.

All of the defendants in the trial — who included Madoff’s secretary, director of operations for investments, account manger, and two computer programmers — were convicted of conspiracy to defraud clients, securities fraud, falsifying the books and records of a broker dealer. Prosecutors obtained at least one conviction on all 33 charges.

The defense argued during the trial that the employees were lied to and were in fact victims, losing tens of millions of dollars that they had invested with Madoff.

The jury deliberated for roughly 20 hours over two weeks before delivering its sentence. The trial was one of the longest in the Manhattan federal court’s history.

Madoff pleaded guilty to fraud charges in 2009 and is serving a 150-year prison term.

[AP]