Palm Beach billionaire and philanthropist Jeffry Picower, described as the biggest beneficiary of Bernard Madoff’s fraud, died on Sunday after he was found lying at the bottom of the pool at his home, police said.

Police were investigating the death of the 67-year-old investor as a drowning, local media reported.

Picower was pulled unconscious from the pool of his multimillion-dollar oceanside home, called Casa del Sud, by his wife and a housekeeper. He was later pronounced dead, the Palm Beach Post reported, quoting police and Fire Rescue officials.

Picower and his wife, Barbara, were friends of Wall Street financier Mr Madoff, who is serving a 150-year sentence after pleading guilty to running a $65bn Ponzi scheme.

The trustee handling the Madoff fraud case, Irving Picard, said in court documents filed in the US bankruptcy court in New York late last month that Mr Picower, newly listed as one of the 400 wealthiest Americans by Forbes magazine, was complicit in the fraud.

Source/Full Story: FT.com

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