As Ponzi schemer rots in jail, his possessions including boxers, bling go up for auction

Swindler Madoff's huge garage sale

As Ponzi schemer rots in jail, his possessions including boxers, bling go up for auction

Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff had a shoe collection that would make Sarah Jessica Parker blush.
The drawers of his luxury homes were packed with piles of neatly folded polo shirts, identical apart from the colour.

And when the con man needed to unwind, he'd slip on a pair of black velveteen slippers with his initials embroidered in gold thread and kick back to some Barry White, Luther Vandross or Rod Stewart.

All this and moreu00a0-- a vast array of jewellery, clothes and furniture that once belonged to Madoff and his wife, Ruthu00a0-- go on the auction block tomorrow.

The stash offers a glimpse into the luxurious life and picky habits of the notorious swindler. "He was extremely meticulous," said Jennifer Crane, from the US Marshals Service asset forfeiture division.

She was one of the first people inside Madoff's upper East Side penthouse after his December 2008 bust.
"Everything was folded beautifully, every drawer you opened up was perfectly organised. It wasn't what I expected," she added.

Auctioneers at Gaston & Sheehan are handling the sale, which will take place online and at the Sheraton Hotel & Towers on Seventh Avenue starting at 10 am. The public can get a sneak peek from 1 pm to 7 pm tomorrow at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

An emerald-cut 10.5-carat diamond ring, valued at $300,000 to $350,000, (Rs 1.33 crore) is the biggest ticket item in the collection. Others including some of Bernie's boxers, a yoga mat and his custom-made bed start at a few hundred dollars.

The entire stock of goods comes from Madoff's East 64th Street penthouse and Montauk beach residence. Auctioneers expect the stash to fetch at least $1.5 million (Rs 67 crore).

"You can get a feel for how they lived, what they came home to every day and what they had in their living room," said Bob Sheehan, owner of the auction house.

Proceeds from the sale will go to a fund compensating victims who lost their life savings to Madoff, who is serving 150 years in prison for masterminding the $65 billion swindle.

Fraudster!

Bernard Lawrence is an incarcerated former stock broker and the admitted operator of what has been described as the largest Ponzi scheme (a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to separate investors from their own money or money paid by subsequent investors, rather than from any actual profit earned) in history.

In March 2009, Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 federal crimes.