Bernie Madoff was a king of the financial world. He was quietly running the largest hedge fund in the world, a fund that eventually spread to over forty nations and handled tens of billions of dollars. Harry Markopolos was a number cruncher at a Boston equity derivatives firm analyzing investment products. When a marketer handed Harry a prospectus outlining Madoff's strategy and asked him to create a similar product, he looked at the numbers. Within minutes, Harry knew it was impossible. The numbers didn't add up. For the next ten years, Markopolos and his investigative team tried desperately to warn the government, the industry, and the press that the largest hedge fund in the industry was a fraud and that the respected and admired Bernie Madoff was a crook--but no one would listen. This is the story of the pursuit of the greatest financial criminal in history.--From publisher description.

Includes index.

A red wagon in a field of snow -- The slot machine that kept coming up cherries -- Falling down the rabbit hole -- Finding more Peters (to pay Paul) -- The goddess of justice wears a blindfold -- Didn't anyone want a Pulitzer? -- More red flags than the Soviet Union -- Closing the biggest barn door in Wall Street history -- Soaring like an eagle surrounded by turkeys -- Epilogue : Mr. Pinkslip goes to Washington.