Madoff Goes to Synagogue

The members of the wealthy Fifth Avenue Synagogue in Manhattan, who suffered nearly $2 billion in losses relating to Bernie Madoff's alleged Ponzi scheme, are now going after their own president, J. Ezra Merkin. Merkin is reputed to have served as a key recruiter for Madoff. "Obviously, he will have to step down," an anonymous member told the New York Post. "He's being sued all over the place." The temple is a small group of influential jews, once call a "Who's Who" of elite world Jewry. Merkin attended Saturday's 9 a.m. service, where the paper says he was "warmly received". And his lawyers insist that, "Mr. Merkin and his family are personally among the largest victims of the massive fraud confessed by Bernard Madoff." Welcome to the club.