Looting of America: Bernard Madoff- NASDAQ Chairman, Con Man

In another move sure to undermine already fragile investor sentiment in the markets, world-class scumbag hedge-fund manager and former chairman of NASDAQ admitted to investigators and key employees that the $50 Billion managed by the firm was "basically a Ponzi scheme."

Madoff also told investigators that there "was no innocent explanation" for his actions. "Madoff's investors included captains of industry, corporations -- some of which are publicly traded -- that used Madoff almost as a high-yielding cash management account, endowments, universities, foundations and, importantly, many high-profile funds of funds," said Douglas Kass, who heads hedge fund Seabreeze Partners Management.

"It appears that at least $15 billion of wealth, much of which was concentrated in southern Florida and New York City, has gone to 'money heaven,'" he said.

Long before this sudden implosion, observers had wondered how he was able to consistently generate returns of more than 10% in seemingly every market environment. Reportedly, U.S. regulators ignored numerous red flags with regard to Madoff's operations.

There are rules that say that you have to be wealthy to invest in a fund like Madoff's. There are no rules that say you have to be wealthy when you get out, as many of Madoff's clients are discovering.