NEW YORK -- Bernie Madoff said he could have been caught in 2003, but he says federal investigators never asked the right questions.
In his first interview since being jailed, Madoff says, "I was astonished." The self-admitted Ponzi schemer claimed "bumbling" investigators acted like "Lt. Colombo." He also says he was the one who told a crew trying to discover how the SEC managed to miss Madoff's worldwide, decades-long $65 billion Ponzi scheme.
"They never even looked at my stock records," Madoff told SEC Inspector General David Kotz, during a jail interview.
Madoff termed one of the SEC investigators as a "blow-hard" who "talked tough but didn't look at anything."
Madoff, 71, pleaded guilty to massive fraud and is serving a 150-year federal prison sentence. Meanwhile, Madoff's bean counter, David Friehling, is expected to plead guilty Tuesday to charges that could get him up to 108 years in prison.
