Here Is How Ruth Madoff Cooked The Books For Over 60 Years In The World's Largest Ponzi scheme

In 2017, the world was captivated by the story of disgraced financier Bernard Madoff, who was brought to life on television screens by HBO's "The Wizard of Lies." The film chronicles the real-life saga of Bernard and Ruth Madoff, the masterminds behind the world's largest Ponzi scheme. The latest film has sparked a global debate on Ruth Madoff’s true knowledge of the con. Here's how the wife and bookkeeper of a convicted financier could have cooked the books for over 60 years. 

Don't Miss:

• Amid the ongoing EV revolution, previously overlooked low-income communities now harbor a huge investment opportunity at just $500.
• Gen Z and Millennial millionaires couldn't care less for stocks and bonds — Here's what they're buying instead.

In 2008, the lives of Bernard Madoff and his family were thrust into the limelight when Bernard confessed to defrauding his clients, who were investors, out of tens of billions of dollars. He would deposit his clients' funds into a single bank account to pay existing clients when they wanted to cash out. This became a problem in 2008 when the market dipped and investors scrambled to withdraw their money. NBC News reported that Bernard had cheated legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg and actors like Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon. 

According to Investopedia, Bernard confessed his sins to his sons, who then turned him over to the police the very next day. Bernard has always maintained that his sons and wife had no idea about the scam, but considering that Ruth was the bookkeeper, many wondered how she could not have noticed. When Bernard was sentenced to 150 years in prison, Ruth maintained that she knew nothing about the scheme. The couple, who had been high school sweethearts, had already been married for 50 years when Bernard started his business, and Ruth officially became his bookkeeper for the illegitimate business. When the truth came out, Ruth only learned about it on Dec. 10 during a family confession. Newsweek reported that Ruth responded to her husband's confession, "What's a Ponzi scheme?" 

Trending: Warren Buffett flipped his neighbor's $67,000 life savings into a $50 million fortune — How much is that worth today?

However, her behavior has led to people questioning her involvement in the con. While Ruth claimed she only learned about her husband's crimes when he confessed, Madoff’s secretary, Eleanor Squillari, revealed that earlier that same day, Ruth had appeared in the office looking distraught. Newsweek also reported that she had withdrawn $10 million that morning. 

During the lawsuit, a forensic investigation into Bernard's checking account revealed that Ruth balanced the numbers into 2007. When asked if Ruth was implicated in cooking the books, Squillari did not confirm or deny the allegation and told Newsweek, "I don’t see Ruth as a criminal. I see her as doing the wrong thing when push came to shove," and added, "She was in this business with him from Day One. What she chose to see, what she didn’t choose to see, I can’t say." 

See Also: Miami is expected to take New York's place as the U.S. Financial Capital. Here's how you can invest in the city before that happens.

What didn't help calm suspicions was that she had cut a deal with the case’s prosecutors to keep $2.5 million in exchange for surrendering $80 million in assets and her home. This, combined with a notable lack of remorse, led many to believe she was involved in cooking the books. However, throughout the entire investigation, Ruth maintained her innocence, and authorities have not been able to connect her to any wrongdoing in her husband's business. Ruth has been keeping a low profile since losing her husband, money, lifestyle, and home. Despite not divorcing him and learning of his infidelity, in 2011, Ruth revealed in a TODAY interview that she did not miss her husband and said, "The villain of all this is behind bars." 

Actress Michelle Pfeiffer, who plays Ruth in the HBO film, believes that Ruth didn't cook the books. "In all the research I did, there wasn't one person who knew the facts who thought Ruth was aware of anything." To this day, Ruth's involvement remains murky at best. 

Read Next:

• No generation before Gen Z has had this investment opportunity – How successful Zoomers plan to retire in their 30's.
• Collecting passive income from real estate just got a lot simpler. A new real estate fund backed by Jeff Bezos gives you instant access to a diversified portfolio of rental properties, and you only need $100 to get started.