NEW YORK — In a courtroom surprise, it was revealed Tuesday that Bernard Madoff will plead guilty Thursday to securities fraud, perjury and other crimes, knowing he could face up to 150 years in prison for one of the largest frauds in history.
The revelation came as prosecutors unveiled an 11-count charging document against the 70-year-old former Nasdaq chairman and as his lawyer, Ira Sorkin, told a judge that Madoff planned to plead guilty this week without a plea deal.
Madoff has been under house arrest at his $7 million Manhattan penthouse since he was booked in early December after authorities said he confessed to his family that he had carried out a $50 billion fraud. In court documents filed Tuesday, prosecutors raised the size of the fraud to $64.8 billion, an amount recounted in apparently false statements from November 2008.
Authorities reviewing the finances of Madoff’s business say the actual loss was more likely much less and that higher numbers reflect false profits he promised investors. So far, authorities have located about $1 billion for jilted investors.
Colorado victims
Denver ranks second after New York for Madoff victims, but that reflects about 800 self-directed individual retirement accounts listing a Denver post-office box. The accounts, registered under NTC & Co., belong to individuals across the country. NTC in turn, belongs to Fiserv, an IRA custodian with operations in Denver that Madoff used to set up accounts.
A handful of Madoff victims live in Denver and Aspen and other mountain towns.
Boulder-based Agile Group has told clients, including talk-show host Mike Rosen and former U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, that it couldn’t return their investments because of dealings it had with Madoff and Minnesota businessman Tom Petters, who also is accused of running a Ponzi scheme.
A disclosure form Tancredo filed with his 2007 presidential bid listed between $530,000 and $1.1 million invested in the Agile Safety Fund.
Sorkin, prosecutors and U.S. District Judge Denny Chin presaged the drama likely to unfold Thursday as Madoff, wearing a gray suit coat over a black tie, sat quietly beside his lawyers.
Bulletproof vest in court
Madoff, who wears a bulletproof vest, arrived at court more than three hours before the hearing as authorities tried to diminish the chance that he would face a confrontation with investors. Several lawyers for investors showed up as spectators, but the courtroom was largely packed with members of the news media.
Asked by the judge whether Madoff would plead guilty Thursday, Sorkin said: “I think that’s a fair expectation.” Chin asked Sorkin whether Madoff would plead guilty to all 11 counts.
“Yes, your honor,” Sorkin answered.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Litt said there was no plea deal and that Madoff could face the maximum penalty under sentencing guidelines: 150 years.
Chin said he would not sentence Madoff on Thursday and that he would limit investors who want to speak at the hearing.
“There is no plea bargain here. Those victims who objected to a plea bargain no longer have a reason to object,” Chin said.
At least 25 Madoff investors have asked to speak Thursday under provisions allowing victims of crime to appear at a plea hearing.
Attorney Jerry Reisman, who represents more than a dozen Madoff investors, predicted that the plea hearing would be “a zoo.”
But Chin told prosecutors to limit the number of victims who will speak and to ensure they conduct themselves in a “respectful and dignified manner.”
U.S. Attorney Lev Dassin said in a statement that the charges “reflect an extraordinary array of crimes committed by Bernard Madoff for more than 20 years. While the alleged crimes are not novel, the size and scope of Mr. Madoff’s fraud are unprecedented.”
