Madoff's Chief Financial Officer Pleads Guilty to Fraud, Money Laundering Charges
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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.
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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.