Madoff might have to forfeit Montauk house

If the U.S. government gets its way, Bernard and Ruth Madoff will soon no longer own a home on the South Fork.

Last week, on behalf of prosecutors, Acting U.S. Attorney Lev L. Dassin filed a notice of intent to seek forfeiture of certain assets held by the Madoffs, including the property located at 216 Old Montauk Highway in Montauk, in the U.S. Southern District Court of New York.

The list of 18 Madoff-owned assets to be seized was filed in court on Monday, March 16, and includes the Montauk oceanfront beach house and three other properties, including an apartment on East 64th Street in Manhattan, a home in Palm Beach, Florida, and a residence in Cap d’ Antibes in France.

In addition to the four residences, the lawsuit also listed several luxury boats, four cars—including two Mercedes, a BMW and a Volkswagon Touareg—a Steinway piano, silverware, securities and $62 million in bank accounts in both Mr. and Ms. Madoff’s names.

According to published sources, the real estate up for seizure totals approximately $22 million in value. The Montauk property has been estimated at $3 million, the Manhattan apartment at $7 million, the Palm Beach home at $11 million, and the French villa at $1 million.

When reached at his Manhattan office on Friday morning, Mr. Madoff’s attorney, Ira Lee Sorkin, a partner at Dickstein Shapiro, LLP, said he was aware of the filing but could not comment.

According to information provided by Mr. Madoff’s lawyers in response to a recent civil lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Madoffs’ net worth at the end of 2008 was $823 million. Of that amount, approximately $700 million is attributed to Mr. Madoff’s ownership in his business.

Mr. Madoff is the former chairman of the NASDAQ Stock Market. He founded his company, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, in 1960. He also ran a hedge fund before being arrested in December 2008 for what is said to be the largest securities fraud in U.S. history.

Earlier this month, Mr. Madoff pled guilty to 11 felonies for stealing an estimated $65 billion from investors in a Ponzi scheme over the last two decades. His bail was revoked at that time and he is currently incarcerated at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan. Last week, Mr. Madoff’s lawyers pleaded to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit to reinstate bail and asked for their client’s return to house arrest, instead of awaiting his sentencing on June 16 from a jail cell.

That appeal was denied on Friday, March 20. Prosecutors argued that Mr. Madoff is a flight risk due to his wealth and overseas connections. The charges against Mr. Madoff could result in up to 150 years of jail time.