Wife 'devastated' by husband's massive scheme

NEW YORK: Ruth Madoff made her voice heard for the first time since her husband's arrest six months ago, saying she was "devastated" by a fraud that cost victims as much as $65 billion.

Ruth Madoff's lawyer, Peter Chavkin, issued a statement moments after Bernard Madoff was sentenced on Monday to 150 years in prison.

"I am breaking my silence now, because my reluctance to speak has been interpreted as indifference or lack of sympathy for the victims of my husband Bernie's crime, which is exactly the opposite of the truth," Ruth Madoff said in the statement.