

Programmers are Indicted in Madoff Case - j_baker
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/18/business/18madoff.html?ref=us

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Tangurena
Here is one article with some more details of the programs they wrote to
specifically make Bernie's frauds possible:

<http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/11/madoff-programmers/>

> _Jerome O'Hara and George Perez, former computer programmers for Madoff's
> Manhattan-based business, were arrested on charges they helped cover up the
> massive scam for more than 15 years and accepted payoffs to keep quiet after
> they threatened to stop hiding the conspiracy, prosecutors said._

[http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/brokerage/2009-11-1...](http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/brokerage/2009-11-13-madoff-
air-charter-jet_N.htm)

<http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/14/business/14madoff.html>

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bwhite
Mark Cuban nailed this early on: [http://blogmaverick.com/2009/01/18/breaking-
down-bernie-mado...](http://blogmaverick.com/2009/01/18/breaking-down-bernie-
madoff/)

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jrockway
So people that design and sell handguns are not liable for murders with those
handguns, but people that design and sell computer software are liable for
crimes committed with that software?

We need more lobbyists.

~~~
tedunangst
"They are charged with conspiracy and falsifying records of a broker-dealer
and of an investment adviser."

If the people selling handguns assist in the murder, they too are liable.

~~~
jrockway
What's "assist"? Telling someone how to modify a semi-automatic gun to be
fully-automatic? (Apparently not.)

Every article about this situation is very low on details, so I am not sure
that the programmers didn't do something obviously illegal. In that case, the
fact that they were programmers is irrelevant, and shouldn't be mentioned.
(The article should be "Some people that worked for Madoff helped him commit
crimes" instead of "Programmers randomly indicted for t3h c0dez.")

~~~
prodigal_erik
If I'm reading this right, they're accused of writing programs whose goal was
to give disinformation to auditors including the SEC. That would make their
being programmers relevant.

