| October 26, 2009 Autopsy set for Madoff associate found dead in Florida pool
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(NECN/ABC) - In Florida, they are waiting for an autopsy to find out just how a close business associate of Bernard Madoff died. Jeffry Picower apparently drowned in the swimming pool of his Palm Beach estate. Although never charged with a crime, Picower was heavily involved in Madoff's shady dealings.
He's been called the single biggest winner in America's largest financial rip-off.
Investigators believe Jeffry Picower, an associate of Bernard Madoff, cleared more than $7 billion in Madoff's Ponzi scheme -- an amount 30 times more than the mastermind took himself.
Sunday afternoon, the billionaire was found at the bottom of the pool at his multi-million dollar oceanside home in Palm Beach, Florida.
Rescue workers were briefly able to restore a pulse, but Picower died a short time later at a hospital. It is still unclear what caused him to drown.
Lawyers for the victims believe Picower's death leaves behind a lot of unanswered questions about the Madoff scheme.
Among them -- his accounts in the Madoff scam.
Investigators say they were "riddled with blatant and obvious fraud."
Picower was being sued for $7.2 billion by the victim's of the Ponzi scheme.
Separately, the trustee, who is trying to recover money for thousands of defrauded investors, is demanding over $5 billion.
As for Bernard Madoff, he is serving a 150-year sentence after pleading guilty to running a $65 billion investment scam.
Matt
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