Betrayal: The Life and Lies of Bernie Madoff

This is the story of the greatest con in financial history-it has commanded the attention of the entire world from the day the news broke on December 11, 2008, and continues to do so! Virtually every day there is another story about Madoff, his victims, his enablers, the world-wide financial institutions that have been crippled by his ponzi scheme. People who should have known better, didn′t-because of greed and complacency.

There are thousands of victims who range from the bold-faced names-Steven Spielberg, Jeff Katzenberg, Mort Zuckerman, Kevin Bacon, Elie Wiesel-titans of business, two of whom committed suicide-to people like us who were left nest eggs by parents and spouses and have seen their money disappear in a smoke and mirrors debacle. Then there are the stories behind his "enablers" who gambled with billions entrusted to them by their clients-without doing any due diligence. And of course the religious institutions who lost their entire endowments because of their naïve trust in this con man. The Enron machinations pale beside the havoc that Madoff has wrecked around the world! And then there is the SEC-asleep at the wheel. There is enough drama and mystery here to fill a dozen books.

Despite all the articles that dissect every aspect of the case, there are four basic questions that keep being asked:

1. Who is this guy, Bernie Madoff? Evil? A sociopath? Genius? WHAT WAS HE THINKING?

2. Who was in on it with him? His sons? Wife? Brother? Nieces and nephews?

3. How did he do it? Was it a complex process or was it a simple ponzi scheme like others differing only in magnitude?

4. WHERE IS THE MONEY?

Andrew Kirtzman′s analysis of the man and the deed is filled with solid research and suspensful storytelling-he has established himself as THE expert on the Madoff case, appearing on WCBS, Fox News, CNN, and in numerous print medias.