Madoff attempts to sequester wife's assets

NEW YORK, March 3 (UPI) -- Defense lawyers for accused trader Bernard Madoff said assets belonging to the New York trader's wife are not related to Madoff's alleged fraud.

Madoff, who allegedly ran a Ponzi scheme that lost investors $50 billion, is seeking to keep $69 million worth of assets, the New York Post reported Tuesday.

Court papers list Ruth Madoff's assets as including $17 million in cash in Wachovia Bank and $45 million in municipal bonds deposited at COHMAD Securities Corp, a company co-owned by Bernard Madoff, the newspaper said.

Hilda Hausner, 91, an investor who lost $800,000 by investing with Madoff's firm, said she was "angry, outraged."

"Where did she get the money from? I guess I gave it to her," Hausner said, claiming the case "gets more ludicrous every minute."

Ruth Madoff's holdings also include homes in New York City and Palm Beach, Fla.

But, finding assets belonging to Madoff's firm has proven more elusive.

Irving Picard, the bankruptcy trustee in charge of tracking down the lost funds, said recently that less than $1 billion had been recovered so far, the Post reported.