Sister of Ponzi fraudster Bernie Madoff is found dead alongside husband in 'murder-suicide' at their Florida home
The sister of the disgraced Ponzi fraudster Bernie Madoff has died, along with her husband, in what's being investigated by Florida police as a murder-suicide.
Sondra Wiener, 86, and husband Marvin Weiner were both found dead Thursday night in their private gated community home in Valencia Lakes, just outside of Tampa, reports indicate.
Palm Beach Police confirmed Saturday that a murder-suicide investigation is currently underway, but would not confirm the Weiners were the deceased, BocaNewsNow reported.
However, sources told the outlet that the couple's bodies were recovered by cops Thursday in their home on Barca Boulevard, an occurrence confirmed by an internal email sent to homeowners in the private housing development notifying them of the Weiners' deaths, and confirming the investigation.
The sister of the disgraced Ponzi fraudster Bernie Madoff - who died in federal prison in April - has died, along with her husband, in what Florida police are calling a possible murder-suicide
Sondra Wiener, 86, and husband Marvin Weiner were both found dead Thursday night in their private gated community home in Valencia Lakes (pictured), outside of Tampa. Cops are keeping mum as to the details of their death and who shot who
'Let me start off by stating that as many of you have heard, we had a tragic situation on Barca Boulevard regarding the passing of Sondra and Marvin Weiner,' the private email obtained by the outlet and penned by an unnamed community leader reads.
'Our thoughts and condolences go out to their family. There is currently an investigation pending. All I can say is at this time there is no security or safety threat to anyone in the community.'
Weiner, Madoff's only sister, was 86. Her husband was 89. Cops did not comment on the circumstances of their deaths, nor whom is thought to have killed the other.
The couple's deaths come a little less than a year after notorious fraudster Madoff's, who died in prison in April.
The couple's deaths come a little less than a year after notorious fraudster Madoff's, who died in prison in April
Madoff was a fixture on Wall Street before his fall in 2008, when he was arrested and pleaded guilty to operating a sprawling, decades-long Ponzi scheme that swindled thousands out of their life savings, according to federal prosecutors.
Madoff started his scheme nearly half a century ago, in the early 70s, and by the time he was busted by feds in December 2008, the financier had already defrauded roughly 37,000 people in 136 countries - out of up to $65 billion.
The crooked speculator's victims included tens of thousands of ordinary investors, as well as big names like Steven Spielberg, Kevin Bacon and Nobel Peace Prize winner and Holocaust survivor Elie Weisel.
Madoff had been a fixture on Wall Street before his fall in 2008, when he was arrested and pleaded guilty to operating a sprawling, decades-long Ponzi scheme that swindled thousands out of their life savings, according to federal prosecutors
Madoff died in federal lockup in North Carolina in April, serving a 150-year prison sentence.
The deaths of his sister and brother-in-law come as the latest installment of a series of tragedies surrounding the family of the fallen financier.
Madoff started his scheme nearly half a century ago, in the early 70s, and by the time he was busted by feds in December 2008, the financier had already defrauded roughly 37,000 people in 136 countries - out of up to $65 billion
His son, Mark, hanged himself inside his New York City apartment in 2010, at the age of 46.
His other son, Andrew, died of cancer in 2014 at age 48.
Moreover, in a prophetic foretelling of the fate of the Weiners and Palm Beach cops' current investigation, Madeoff's wife, now-80-year-old Ruth Madoff, has claimed that she and her husband both attempted suicide together during his scandal.
In a prophetic foretelling of the fate of the Weiners and Palm Beach cops' current investigation, Madeoff's wife, now-80-year-old Ruth Madoff (pictured here with Madoff), has claimed that she and her husband both attempted suicide together amid fallout from his fraud scandal
However, their attempt, which consisted of downing prescription pills Ambien and Klonopin in December 2008, failed.
'I don't know whose idea it was, but we decided to kill ourselves because it was so horrendous what was happening,' Madoff told CBS News years after the incident. 'We had terrible phone calls. Hate mail, just beyond anything and I said "...I just can't go on anymore."'
'I took what we had, he took more,' Ruth told the outlet. 'We took pills and woke up the next day....It was very impulsive and I am glad we woke up.'
The details of the Weiners deaths are still mired in mystery, with investigators still keeping mum concerning the exact details of how they died, and what drew them to declare the case a murder-suicide.
DailyMail.com reached out to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office to comment on the case Sunday morning, but did not immediately head back.
The investigation is currently ongoing.
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