Digest: Madoff's auditor pleads guilty to fraud

LEGAL

Madoff's longtime auditor pleads guilty to fraud

Bernard L. Madoff's longtime auditor pleaded guilty to securities fraud charges Tuesday, saying he failed to do his job to verify the disgraced money manager's records but did not know Madoff was running a massive Ponzi scheme.

David Friehling, 49, entered the plea in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, apologizing to the thousands of victims who lost billions of dollars while he audited Madoff's financial records from 1991 to 2008.

"In what was the biggest mistake of my life; I put my trust with Bernard Madoff," Friehling told Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein.

The charges carry a potential prison term of up to 114 years in prison, though substantial cooperation with prosecutors could result in significant leniency.

-- Associated Press

COMMODITIES

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