Madoff linked to corrupt Irish bank
Funds were used to buy luxury yacht, vintage cars
By
KENNETH HAYNES
,
IrishCentral.com Staff Writer
Published Sunday, November 15, 2009, 9:00 AM
Updated Sunday, November 15, 2009, 9:15 AM
Fraudster Bernie Madoff
Jailed financier Bernie Madoff used disgraced Irish bank Anglo-Irish to funnel payments for his extravagant lifestyle, investigators say.
The funds were used to buy a luxury yacht, vintage cars and to fund private investments. Madoff has been sentenced to 150 years in prison for his $45 billion Ponzi scheme.
A case against Madoff in bankruptcy court in New York alleges that Anglo funds were used to pay for a 75-foot Leopold sports yacht, the "Bull," in 2007, and also to buy a vintage Aston-Martin sports car.
In all, $16 million of Madoff money was routed through Anglo-Irish Bank. In December 2006 Anglo-Irish Bank wired $1.6 million directly to Ruth Madoff's account in New York. No charges have been filed against Madoff's wife, but investigations are still continuing.
Anglo-Irish is now essentially a failed bank owned by the state after revelations about financial misdeeds. Chief Executive Sean FitzPatrick was forced to resign and may face criminal charges over his alleged mishandling of bank accounts for personal use.
FitzPatrick, while Anglo-Irish chairman, had borrowed more than $150 million from the bank, and hid the loans from auditors for eight years.
The former multi-millionaire banker defaulted on the loans following a series of major business setbacks and the economic slump. Many leading Irish financial figures were caught up in the crash as well.
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