'It Was All Fake': Madoff Aide Pleads Guilty to Fraud

Bernard Madoff's right-hand man pleaded guilty Tuesday to fraud, conspiracy and other criminal charges, making him the first of Madoff's employees to confess to helping the infamous money manager orchestrate a Ponzi scheme worth up to $65 billion.

Frank DiPascali Jr., who was the chief financial officer of Madoff's firm and oversaw his investment strategy, faces 10 criminal charges that could send him to prison for 125 years.

Madoff pleaded guilty in March and was sentenced to 150 years in prison.

DiPascali's guilty plea is part of a mix of criminal and civil cases that federal and state regulators have filed to punish firms and people who may have had a hand in the largest Ponzi scheme in history.

The targets of these cases have ranged from Madoff and his associates to hedge funds that funneled money to him.

DiPascali said he is cooperating with the government, which is trying to locate billions of dollars of fraud money and figure out who else was in on it. Madoff has reportedly not cooperated with that investigation.

"From the early 1990s until December 2008, I helped Bernie Madoff and others carry out a fraud," DiPascali told the court, according to Bloomberg News.

"It was all fake. It was all fictitious," he said. "It was wrong, and I knew it was wrong at the time." link.....