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Madoff gets maximum 150 years in prison

(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-06-29 23:55

NEW YORK: Bernard Madoff has been sentenced to the maximum 150 years in prison for his multibillion-dollar fraud scheme.

US District Judge Denny Chin handed down the sentence in New York on Monday.

Defrauded investor Emma Devito, 81, arrives at the United States Courthouse in lower Manhattan, June 29, 2009 for the sentencing hearing for convicted swindler Bernard Madoff. [Agencies]

Related readings:  Judgment day falls on Madoff  US proposes 150 years for Madoff  Lawyer: Madoff should spend 12 years in prison  Fleeced Madoff investors demand harsh punishment

Defense attorneys had sought 12 years, while prosecutors wanted the maximum. The federal probation department had recommended 50 years.

Chin called the fraud "staggering" and noted that it spanned more than 20 years. He says "the breach of trust was massive."

The 71-year-old former Nasdaq chairman pleaded guilty to securities fraud and other charges in March and has been jailed since.