Madoff Victims May Have to Return 6 Years of Profits

**Vulpix** · 12-23-2008, 11:18 AM

Madoff Victims May Have to Return 6 Years of Profits

Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Like some of Bernard Madoff’s clients, a Florida restaurant owner was lucky enough to withdraw part of his investment before the money manager allegedly confessed to a $50 billion Ponzi scheme. Now he’s worried he might be asked to give it back.

The 53-year-old investor, who asked not to be identified to protect his stake, took out about $600,000 this year from his $1.5 million account, using some of it to pay down a mortgage. He and other Madoff clients who withdrew funds as long as six years ago may be sued on behalf of other victims to return profits and even principal, securities and bankruptcy lawyers say.

“Right now there are Madoff winners and Madoff losers,” said Lynn LoPucki, who teaches bankruptcy law at Harvard University. “Before this is over there will be nothing but Madoff losers.”

Clients of Madoff had about $36 billion with his firm, according to a Bloomberg tally that may include some double counting. Before his arrest on Dec. 11, Madoff, 70, confessed to employees that his “giant Ponzi scheme” may have cost as much as $50 billion,
according to an FBI complaint. His misconduct may have stretched back to at least the 1970s, two people familiar with the government’s inquiry of Madoff said last week.

The Florida investor, who first gave his money to Madoff five years ago, said he had no hint of fraud and would go to jail rather than give up the amount he took out.