Last night I watched the “Madoff” TV movie on ABC (conclusion is tonight). I thought Richard Dreyfuss and Blythe Danner did a good job playing Bernie and Ruth Madoff. Bernie was convicted in 2009 and is serving his 150 yr sentence in Butner federal prison in North Carolina. One son committed suicide and the other died of cancer. Ruth stopped visiting Bernie several years ago and his grandchildren have never visited him. Ruth lives in Connecticut in a 1 BR apt. Some of the money (about $17 billion) has been recovered and paid to victims, property and assets have been sold or auctioned off, but there’s still a lot of money victims will never see. A lot of people are outraged because Ruth was allowed to keep $2.5 million. So she lives in a small apartment, does her own grocery shopping, and no longer has limousines that $2.5 million is still a lot of money for her to live on for the rest of her life.
I don't know the whole story, especially her involvement except that she was his wife. She lost 2 sons, to me that's enough punishment. it doesn't bother me that she has 2.5 million. Doesn't look like she's living the high life now.
I have to agree with Chrissy, the woman lost her family. I don't know how she ended up with 2.5 million, maybe that much was actually theirs to begin with?
Regardless of how she's living now (hardly the life of a pauper) Ruth lived the high life for many years off of stolen money. (it's my understanding she was not charged and wasn't involved in the the fraud. But I don't know the criteria as to why she was allowed to keep $2.5M.) I can understand how victims and the families of victims of her husband's $50 billion (billion with a B) fraud/crime would be upset. Bernie Madoff is the father of the deceased sons, he lost his family, and he certainly deserves to be exactly where he is.