made-off

Bernie Madoff’s Secretary Didn’t Want to Spend Kwanzaa in Jail

Annette Bongiorno, one of Bernie Madoff’s administrative assistants, allegedly came away with $14.5 million from Madoff’s massive Ponzi scheme. This morning, a judge revoked Bongiorno’s bail and ordered her into custody because an “abundance of unrestricted assets” (like the $2.4 million in cash and stocks she had from 40 years of service to the Madoff family business) made her a flight risk. Bongiorno was unable to piece together enough assets from friends and relatives to secure her $5 million bond. Really? But Madoff employees typically had such an easy time getting friends and family to fork over cash. Outside the court, Bongiorno’s lawyer, Maurice Sercarz, said he didn’t know any specifics about her holiday plans, but “Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa — she didn’t want to go in [to jail].”

Judge revokes $5M bond for ex-Madoff worker Annette Bongiorno[NYP]

Bernie Madoff’s Secretary Didn’t Want to Spend Kwanzaa in Jail