The Sins of Ruth Madoff

IN AN EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT FROM MADOFF: THE FINAL WORD, THE PONZI KING'S WIFE IS PORTRAYED AS A LIAR. TRAINED AS A BOOKKEEPER, SHE REGULARLY RECONCILED THE ACCOUNT THAT HOUSED THE $68 BILLION FRAUD FOR DECADES. THE INSIDE STORY OF WHY "RUTHIE BOOKS" AND HER TWO SONS WERE NEVER CHARGED WITH A CRIME.

- RICHARD BEHAR

Ruth "Ruthie Books" Madoff. That's the nickname FBI agents privately gave to Bernie Madoff's wife of nearly 62 years, and it's a fitting one, given that she lied like a mobster on the witness stand when she appeared on 60 Minutes-one of the rare interviews she granted since her husband's arrest in 2008.

On the show, which aired in 2011, she told Morley Safer that she had worked as a receptionist and bookkeeper at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities (BLMIS) from 1961 to 1963, but then left to raise their sons. "And later on, when the boys started to work there," she added, "we lived within walking distance, and I had an office there where I took care of decorating things and house things and boat bills and managing those things. But I was never the bookkeeper after 1963."

As with every Ponzi scheme, Bernie Madoff lured in new money by pointing to the mammoth gains being pocketed by those who had already "invested." But keeping your customers satisfied, even as you swindle them year after year, requires more managerial acumen than you might think. Financial records (with her handwriting on them) and testimony from former employees reveal that Ruth did plenty of work to maintain some of the critical Ponzi bank accounts for decades after the 1960s and right up until early 2008, the year their bubble busted. "I remember thinking, as I was watching the show, 'Oh my God, she's on 60 Minutes lying about her role in the company!"" exclaims former prosecutor Lisa Baroni, who oversaw several years of investigations on Madoff family and employee cases. "What she said was untrue."