NEW YORK – Five former employees of imprisoned financier Bernard Madoff (MAY'-dawf) have been convicted of conspiracy for helping him carry out his Ponzi scheme.
The verdicts came Monday in a Manhattan trial that lasted nearly six months. The federal court trial was the first to result from the multi-decade fraud that landed Madoff in prison for 150 years.
The defendants are all former employees of Madoff's securities firm. They were accused of enriching themselves while telling an elaborate web of lies for decades. The fraud cheated investors of billions of dollars and duped government regulators.
The massive fraud was revealed in December 2008 when Madoff ran out of money and was arrested.
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