U.S. marshals seize Madoffs' luxury apartment

By Grant McCool

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. marshals seized the luxury $7 million New York City penthouse apartment of imprisoned fraudster Bernard Madoff and his wife, Ruth, officials said on Thursday.

A spokesman for the U.S. Marshals Service said Mrs Madoff was present when agents took possession of the four-bedroom apartment on Manhattan's East Side under court orders and then she left. It was not known where she would live and her lawyer could not be reached for comment.

Disgraced financier Bernard Madoff, 71, was sentenced on Monday to an effective life term for Wall Street's biggest investment fraud of as much as $65 billion. He was arrested by the FBI last December and he pleaded guilty in March.

U.S. Marshals Service spokesman Roland Ubaldo told reporters and photographers outside the building that marshals spent about three hours securing the premises.

"Restitution for the victims is the government's top priority," the United States Marshal for the Southern District of New York (Manhattan) Joseph Guccione, said in an emailed statement.

"Ruth Madoff has vacated the residence and surrendered all saleable personal property within the residence to the United States Marshals Service."

The Madoffs agreed with U.S. prosecutors to forfeit any claims to their assets, property and accounts with proceeds going to the thousands of investors defrauded in his worldwide scheme.

Court documents said the apartment's contents include a Steinway piano valued at $39,000, clocks, lamps, lighting fixtures and sconces worth about $1.7 million; paintings, prints and photographs of $1.6 million and other valuables.