NEW YORK ( CNN ) -- Frank DiPascali , formerly the finance chief at Bernard Madoff 's investment advisory business , pleaded guilty in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday to 10 charges including securities fraud and international money laundering . Frank DiPascali , center in this courtroom sketch , said he knew for about 20 years he was engaged in wrongdoing . The charges carry a maximum sentence of 125 years . With his guilty plea , DiPascali waived his right to a trial . As Tuesday 's hearing commenced , U.S. District Judge Richard J. Sullivan explained that for him to accept DiPascali 's guilty plea , DiPascali would have to sufficiently convince him that he was , in fact , guilty . That set the stage for a dramatic statement from DiPascali about his history at Madoff 's firm , his personal relationship with Madoff , and the mechanics of a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme for which Madoff was convicted in June . While DiPascali 's guilty plea and the judge 's acceptance of it were expected , both the defense and the prosecution were surprised by the judge 's decision to reject DiPascali 's bail agreement -- and to have him escorted from the courtroom in handcuffs . The defense and even the prosecution pleaded with the judge not to order DiPascali into custody . Prosecutors told the judge they believed remanding DiPascali would impede the `` efficiency '' of their Madoff investigation . Marc Mukasey , the lead defense attorney , stood multiple times to dispute the decision , variously suggesting to the judge that DiPascali instead be put under house detention , that he wear an electronic monitoring device , and that the decision on his bail agreement be postponed for 48 to 72 hours . He added that DiPascali 's family was `` completely unprepared '' for this outcome . While Sullivan patiently heard out Mukasey 's many counterproposals , he refused to back down from his decision , asserting that DiPascali was too serious a flight risk given the `` astronomical '' maximum sentence he may receive . The judge also said that he could not `` overlook the conduct [ DiPascali ] admitted to '' despite DiPascali 's avowed determination to do the right thing henceforth . Though DiPascali remained outwardly calm for much of Tuesday 's proceedings , the judge 's decision not to grant him bail appeared to stun him . He seemed in a daze as it became clear he would leave the courtroom in handcuffs , cupping his head in his hands and rubbing his temples . Earlier in his testimony , DiPascali recounted how he joined Madoff 's company as a newly minted high-school grad in 1975 . He held numerous jobs during his 33-year tenure -- options trader and research analyst among them -- but above all he was a `` guy who did whatever he was told to do around the office . '' Working side by side with Madoff for decades , DiPascali developed a tight bond with his employer . `` Bernie was a mentor to me and more , '' he said , adding that he was `` loyal to a terrible , terrible fault . '' His sense of loyalty led him to falsify documents for his boss for years on end , he said . Using a financial program , he looked up historical prices of stocks and then drafted customer statements showing bogus stock transactions . He calculated theoretical commissions that the business should have received from the trades that it did not actually make , and then wired money from account to account to make those commissions appear , he said . And as a principal point of contact for investors in Madoff 's investment advisory business , DiPascali said , he also regularly fielded calls from investors curious about how their money was being managed , knowing that the trades he told them about were entirely fictitious . He said he had been aware that what he was doing was wrong since the `` late '80s , early '90s . '' `` I do n't know how I went from an 18-year-old kid who happened to have a job [ to ] standing in front of you today , '' he said . DiPascali repeatedly stated that he perpetrated the massive fraud in collusion `` with others , '' though he specified neither who those other were nor how many they numbered . DiPascali said he rationalized to himself that Madoff 's victims would have a soft landing if the Ponzi scheme ever came crumbling down . He said he thought Madoff had assets he could liquefy in a worst-case scenario . `` I know my apology means nothing , '' DiPascali said . His voice quavered as he expressed remorse for his part in swindling charities that had invested with Madoff . Miriam Siegman , a Madoff victim who said she lost 40 years ' worth of personal savings in the scheme and was now on the brink of homelessness , asked the judge to reject DiPascali 's guilty plea . She insisted that the `` full truth '' would come out only if DiPascali stood trial . Both legal teams said they expected sentencing to happen in May . Each side will have the opportunity to submit documents and testimonies in support of or against DiPascali before Sullivan hands down the sentence . DiPascali is the second person involved in the Madoff scheme to land behind bars as a result of the fraud . In June , Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 counts and was sentenced to 150 years in prison for masterminding the scheme . Prosecutors have said it was the largest investor fraud committed by a single person , totaling billions in losses to investors .
NEW : Judge denies conviction for Frank DiPascali , despite deal he had with Sanders . DiPascali , Bernie Sanders 's fiance chief , pleaded guilty to securities fraud . He was sentenced to death this year for a Ponzi scheme . DiPascali admits to creating false accounts with historical stock prices .