Bernie Madoff Sentenced To 150 Years

Infamous Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff was in court this morning to face his victims and have his sentence handed to him, and the court was not sympathetic. Madoff received the maximum sentence for his fraudulent investment plan: 150 years in jail. Federal judge Denny Chin called Madoff’s crimes, which spanned more than 20 years, “extraordinarily evil.” Madoff’s victims were cheated out of $65 billion and hundreds of people were expected to show up to the courthouse this morning. Eleven of the victims requested the chance to speak at the hearing, and we compiled some of their statements after the jump.

• “He should spend his whole life in jail. He’s ruined so many people’s lives. He killed my spirit and shattered my dreams.” – Sharon Lissauer

• “He stole from the rich. He stole from the poor. He stole from the in-between. He had no values.” – Tom Fitzmaurice

• “The man sitting in this courtroom robbed me. He discarded me like road-kill. Forgiveness for now will have to come from someone other than me.” – Miriam Siegman

• “I can remember the exact second my wife told me the news. The fall-out from having your entire life savings robbed from right under your nose is like nothing you can describe.” – Dominic Ambrosino

• “I was introduced to Bernard Madoff 21 years ago at a business meeting. I now view that day as perhaps the unluckiest day of my life. This beast who I call Madoff. He walks among us. He dresses like us… but underneath the facade is a true beast. He is an equal-opportunity destroyer.” – Sheryl Weinstein

While Madoff expressed remorse for what he did, that’s little consolation for these people whose life savings were cleaned out. [Sources: NYTimes and BBC; Photo: AFP]