Madoff sitting on $9B in hidden booty: Report

Bernard Madoff is telling fellow prisoners that he secretly transferred $9 billion in funds to three people before federal officials shut down his investment firm.

According to a story last week in the New York Post, a fellow inmate claims that the jailed Ponzi artist told him about the funneled funds. The prisoner said he believes that Mr. Madoff sent the money “to personal friends.”

Mr. Madoff, 72, is serving a life sentence at the Butner, N.C., medium-security prison.

The inmate, who said the convicted swindler has been seeing a psychiatrist while in jail, hangs out regularly with another infamous convict — Jonathan Pollard, who was convicted of spying for Israel after working as a civilian intelligence analyst for the U.S. Navy. According to the Post, Mr. Madoff also pals around with former New York pharmacist John Mancini, who was sent to jail for illegally distributing millions of painkillers.

“Jonathan Pollard and him watch TV together. They watch CNN,” the inmate said. “Bernie likes watching to see if there’s anything about him on it.”

The inmate told the Post that Mr. Madoff gets angry if he doesn’t like how he’s portrayed on television.

Reportedly, Mr. Madoff also talks occasionally with mob kingpin Carmine Persico, who is serving a life sentence at Butner.

“They play boccie” and take walks together, the inmate said.

The convict also told the Post that Mr Madoff is one of — if not the most — high-profile inmate at Butner.

“Everybody knows Bernie Madoff,” the inmate said. “Everyone says, “Hey, Bernie, how are you doing?’ To a lot of inmates, he’s a god.”