Madoff yacht sold at auction

Fort Lauderdale - Disgraced financier Bernard Madoff's yacht Bull, two smaller boats and a Mercedes-Benz convertible were sold at auction on Tuesday for more than $1m combined.

Madoff's 1969 Rybovich, a restored 16 meter fishing boat, sold for $700 000 to an unknown buyer. A 11 meter Shelter Island runabout named Sitting Bull went for $320 000 and the 7 meter Maverick centre console Little Bull fetched $21 000. The Mercedes, a 1999 model owned by Ruth Madoff, sold for $30 000.

A 18 meter Viking yacht once owned by Madoff's former chief financial officer, Frank DiPascali, sold for $950 000.

The private auction was held by the US Marshals Service, which seized Madoff's property and assets after his massive pyramid scheme was exposed. All proceeds will benefit Madoff's wronged investors, and Madoff himself is serving a 150-year federal prison sentence.

Seventy bidders registered for the event, many of them putting up a $100 000 deposit to make offers on the yachts. Kevin Quirk, a marina manager, said Madoff's notoriety was a big reason for the large turnout.

"It's the hottest thing going," Quirk said.

Kim Hannah, who lost out on a bid for the Mercedes, said she and her boyfriend were motivated in part because the money would go to Madoff's victims.

"It was a chance to give back and also get a good car," Hannah said.

The boat auction followed a sale of Madoff personal property in New York that also raised more than $1m. Two or three additional auctions are planned, and Madoff's homes in Manhattan and Palm Beach remain for sale.

- AP