What is it with the Jeffr(e)y’s of the world and creating history in the wrong end of conscience? Well, Jeffry Picower was one of the entities of this planet who introduced a foolproof scam in the business world.
The Madoff Investment scandal did not just develop the methods of the authorities but provided a major inspiration to the film industry that would later go on to develop various films regarding Ponzi schemes.
He was a decorated investor and philanthropist. It was estimated that he profited approximately $7 billion from the investment scam. He put Bernard L. Madoff as the head of the company and ran the whole Ponzi scheme from behind the stage.
Now, you might want to know a little bit more about him before getting into his estimated net worth before his mysterious death; well, here it is – Jeffry Picower used to work as an accountant in a well-known firm known as, Laventhol & Horwath. It was later found that he sheltered the company massively from taxes.
However, a client caught the fraudulent activity and sued the company and him. Thereon, the IRS got involved and challenged the nature of his accounts. After that, Jeffry Picower got the United States Securities and Exchange Commission behind him. They subsequently closed the doors for him.
Although, Jeffry Picower was too clever to stop there. He opened up a fraudulent charity by the name of Picower Institute for Medical Research. He invested $10 million to start it. After that, in the name of charity, he oversaw one of the biggest scams in the history of the world.
He turned his charity into a profit-making company. He merged another company with it. He was the largest stakeholder in both companies. Then, this whole scheme went on for quite a while till a lawsuit was put up against him in the United States Bankruptcy Court for $7.2 billion.
After his death, his wife settled the estates with Irving Pritchard for the same amount mentioned before. It created history for becoming the biggest forfeiture in the history of American judiciaries. Along with penning down one of the greatest Ponzi schemes the world has seen, Jeffry Picower went down in history as a record-making personality.
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How Did Jeffry Picower Die And How Did It Affect His Net Worth?
Well, Jeffry Picower was swimming in the pool at Palm Beach. He faced a heart attack while swimming and nearly drowned. His wife found him and took him to the hospital, and however, it was too late. He died more or less than an hour later.
The hospital, Good Samaritan Medical, and the local police, Palm Beach Police Department, claimed that the autopsy of the body determined he died due to a horrific heart attack, and the drowning made it worse, making his chances to live next to null in the next hour.
Then again, various theories say that he had been murdered as he developed bitter relationships with various influential people, and more importantly, everyone in the country was more or less affected by his scheme and wanted him dead.
It is suspicious how the whole death took place. However, there is no proof of such claims. Therefore, it might completely be a false theory, or it might have a bigger play in the picture. Nothing is known for sure at the moment.
His net worth was indeed got affected by his death as his wife settled the estate with Irving Pritchard shortly after that for an amount of $7.2 billion. Therefore, it can be understood that his net worth could have been different in different circumstances.
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Jeffry Picower’s Net Worth Before His Death
Jeffry Picower was named in the list of the top 400 richest people in the United States. His net worth was more or less than $1 billion before he died.
In spite of that, Forbes claimed that Jeffry Picower was indeed worth a lot more than $1 billion in unforeseen accounts. Therefore, it is possible that he was much richer than what official records claim.
The Mandoff Investment Scandal will go down as one of the biggest fraudulent schemes in the history of the world, and Jeffry Picower’s unique methods have indeed created more Ponzi schemes and inspired a generation of frauds even now.
Although, the authorities have toughened up as well. Who knows? Jeffry Picower had opened up the world’s loophole in the most profitable manner, and he will forever be remembered in one way or the other.
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