U.S. marshalls sieze Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff's 1969 Rybovich luxury yacht in Florida.A 55-foot luxury yacht and a smaller motor boat owned by jailed con man Bernard Madoff were seized Wednesday by federal marshals in Florida.
The "Bull," a vintage 1969 Rybovich yacht in tip-top condition, and the 24-foot motor boat were grabbed at a pair of marinas down south, said U.S. Marshals spokesman Barry Golden.
The custom-built yacht was worth about $800,000.
The boats were part of the $823 million in assets owned by Madoff and wife Ruth at the end of 2008 - just weeks after the one-time Wall Street wizard admitted running a $65 billion Ponzi scam.
Last week, an attorney involved in the case said French authorities were about to seize Madoff's Chateau des Pins villa - his $1 million, three-bedroom French Riviera hideaway.
Madoff's attorney said the disgraced financier wouldn't fight the seizure.
Federal prosecutors in New York are targeting his penthouse apartment on E. 64th St. and homes in Montauk, L.I., and Palm Beach, Fla.
Authorities hope to use the seized assets to reimburse the hundreds of Madoff victims - although it seems most will only receive a fraction of their lost life savings, retirement funds or other investments.
Madoff remains locked up in the Metropolitan Correctional Center, awaiting his June 16 sentencing. Madoff, 70, faces up to 150 years in prison - a virtual life sentence for the man behind the largest financial swindle in U.S. history.
Original Source : http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2009/04/01/2009-04-01_us_marshalls_sieze_ponzi_schemer_bernard.html
