Crime | Bernard Madoff Madoff Delays Could Point to Plea Bargain Wording in court order suggests negotiations in $50B fraud case By Clay Dillow Posted Jan 13, 2009 9:41 AM CST Copied In this Jan. 5, 2009, file photo, disgraced financier Bernard Madoff leaves US District Court in Manhattan after a bail hearing. (AP Photo) Signs emerged yesterday that disgraced financier Bernard Madoff is trying to cut a deal that could end his $50 billion fraud case without trial, the New York Times reports. A federal magistrate refused to revoke Madoff’s bail and delayed a hearing on Madoff’s case for 30 days so discussions with his lawyers concerning disposition of the case could continue. “He’s trying to cut a deal,” a former securities regulator said. “The only other possible ‘disposition’ that could be negotiated would be for the government to drop the whole case—and that’s not going to happen” Added a former federal prosecutor: “Obviously, both sides had to agree to delay the hearing, so there must be some discussions under way that the defendant believes are in his best interest.” Read These Next North Carolina shooting suspect once walked the red carpet. Skydivers leap from plane 2 minutes before fatal crash. 'We heard a big bang,' says churchgoer in Michigan Tossed beers, hostile fans take the spotlight at Ryder Cup. Report an error