NEW YORK – The former chief financial officer for Bernard Madoff pleaded guilty in a cooperation deal to 10 charges, including conspiracy, after he says he helped the disgraced financier and others "carry out a fraud that hurt thousands of people."
Frank DiPascali entered the pleas Tuesday in federal court in Manhattan.
The charges carry a potential penalty of up to 125 years in prison, but the cooperation will probably bring leniency.
DiPascali apologized for his actions and says he followed Madoff too loyally since 1975.
He says the transactions were "all fake. It was all fictitious. It was wrong, and I knew it was wrong at the time."
Madoff is serving 150 years in prison for a Ponzi scheme that demolished thousands of people's life savings, wrecked charities and shook confidence in the financial system.
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