Madoff will not attend son's funeral

NEW YORK, Dec. 14 (UPI) -- Bernard Madoff won't attend the funeral of his son who committed suicide in New York on the two-year anniversary of the elder Madoff's arrest, officials said.

Mark Madoff, 46, the son of the convicted Ponzi schemer serving a 150-year sentence at the Butner Federal Correctional Complex in North Carolina, was discovered dead Saturday morning, having hanged himself with a dog leash in downtown Manhattan at almost the exact hour, two years later, of his father's arrest, ABC News reported.

Madoff will not attend his son's funeral but will hold a private service from his jail cell, his lawyer, Ira Sorkin, said Monday.

"Mr. Madoff will not be attending the funeral out of consideration for his daughter-in-law and two grandchildren's privacy," Sorkin said, refusing to comment on whether Madoff had asked to attend the funeral.

It is unlikely prison officials would permit Madoff to attend even if he wanted to, said Herb Hoelter, a prison consultant who advised Madoff prior to being sent to prison.

Mark Madoff had struggled after his father's conviction, but lawyers said Mark was in no danger of facing criminal charges despite a continuing investigation.