Turns out that the man who waged a one-man crusade against Bernard Madoff, Harry Markopolos, wants to be left alone. But here's the interesting point:
"Why would people think I feel good about this?" the past president of the Boston Security Analysts Society was quoted as telling the Boston Globe. "People think I'm a hero, but I didn't stop him. He stopped himself."
Markopolos obviously believed he was right, and that Madoff was a fraud, and that the nature of his Ponzi scheme meant that it would all collapse at some point. For most people the Madoff affair has a freak show quality, but not for Harry Markopolos, for whom it has been a background assumption for nearly a decade. For Harry Markopolos a film which chronicles his attempts to Madoff over the past 10 years will of course end in a finale where his failure to convince others triggers a wave of economic destruction.
- Log in to post comments
Yes that is a most striking comment. Here is the original Boston Globe article (may require registration - ? try Google news)
www.boston.com/business/articles/2009/01/08/the_whistleblower
I watched C-Span when Harry Markopolos testified before a congressional committee. He was fascinating and knew what he was talking about.
Instead of the SEC beefing up its staff with more incompetent bureaucrats, let the agency contract out people like Markopolos to review the practices of suspect scam artists. The incentive for profit by outside contractors would certainly be motivation to ferret out criminals.
The federal bankruptcy courts contract out to law firms to chase down assets, etc. Believe me, they are ruthless and eager to find, locate, and seize assets. Works for me.