Florida Auction Rakes in $2 Million for Madoff Victims

Frank DiPascali, who worked for convicted Ponzi scammer Bernard Madoff for 33 years, has finally out earned his boss. He had the bigger yacht, and it brought more money than any of Madoff's boats at an auction Tuesday that raised more than $2 million for Madoff's victims.

The U.S. Marshals seized all three of Bernie Madoff's yachts and they hit the auction block Nov. 16, 2009.

(ABC News)
More Photos

The 61-foot Viking yacht owned by Madoff's former chief financial officer went for $900,000 Tuesday afternoon in a Fort Lauderdale sale run by National Liquidators for the U.S. Marshals Marshal's Service Asset Forfeiture Division.

Click here to go behind the scenes of Brian Ross' investigation into Bernie and Ruth Madoff.

Seventy bidders placed deposits of up to $100,000 for the right to haggle over three vessels and a Mercedes owned by Ruth and Bernie Madoff, as well as DiPascali's boat, the Dorothy Jo, with all proceeds will go to the victims of Madoff's $65 billion scheme.

Related

PHOTOS: Inside Palm Beach: Brian Ross Investigates the Secret World of Madoff

PHOTOS: The Madoff Family Album

More from Brian Ross and the Investigative Team

Madoff's 55-foot "Bull, a restored, 40-year-old Rybovich sportfishing boat, brought in $700,000, according to the U.S. Marshals. The auction catalog described it as designed for "tournament anglers," with "luxury appointments" and "premium woodwork everywhere." Prior to the auction, a Florida-based yacht salesman had told Bloomberg News that similar boats retailed for $450,000.

Roland Ubaldo, a spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals, said the action at the auction, which took less than an hour, was heated. "There was a lot of competitive bidding. There was a lot of back and forth. A couple guys were going head to head with each other." Bob Toney, president and CEO of National Liquidators, said, "We could not have been more pleased with the reaction. There was 100 percent satisfaction between us and the Marshals service."

According to Ubaldo, some of the heaviest bidding was for Bernie Madoff's 38-foot "Sitting Bull" twin-engined runabout, which has a teak-trimmed cockpit and teak interior. The "Sitting Bull" brought $320,000.

But Ubaldo said interest was keenest in the black 1999 Mercedes once driven by Bernie Madoff's wife Ruth, which has only 12,827 miles on the odometer. After heavy bidding, the winner paid $30,000. Madoff's smallest boat, the 23-foot "Little Bull," brought $21,000.