Bernie Madoff’s Sister Dies In Apparent Murder-Suicide

Topline

The sister of Bernie Madoff, the late disgraced financier behind the largest Ponzi scheme ever, died in an apparent murder-suicide, local police confirmed Sunday, representing the latest tragedy befalling Madoff’s family following his epic fall from grace.

Bernard Madoff (C) walks out from Federal Court after a bail hearing in Manhattan January 5, 2009 in … [+] New York City. Madoff’s family has since been struck by repeated tragedy.

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Key Facts

Sondra Wiener, Madoff’s 87-year-old sister was found dead from a gunshot wound Thursday in her Boynton Beach, Florida, home along with an unidentified 90-year-old male victim, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office told Forbes Sunday morning.

Palm Beach County detectives’ investigation determined the deaths were the result of a murder-suicide, but the department did not say who used the gun.

Local news outlet BocaNewsNow.com first reported Wiener’s death Saturday, citing an email from Wiener’s neighborhood association, and identified the other victim as Marvin Wiener, Sondra Wiener’s 90-year-old husband.

Key Background

Madoff died in a federal prison last April at 82 years old due to natural causes. Madoff was serving a 150-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to 11 felonies in 2009, attracting attention for his financial crimes during the Great Recession. He defrauded $65 billion from 38,000 clients, according to federal prosecutors’ estimates. Madoff’s son Mark Madoff died from suicide in 2010, while his other son Andrew Madoff died of lymphoma in 2014, blaming the recurrence of his cancer on his father.

Big Number

At least $1.7 million. That’s how much in money stolen by Madoff that Sondra and Marvin Wiener, along with their son and daughter-in-law, received between 2002 and 2008, according to a 2010 federal lawsuit.

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