New York Mets season ticket holder Bernard L. Madoff is in jail and won’t be able to make it to the team’s home opener on April 13 at brand new Citi Field.
Consequently, the bankruptcy trustee overseeing liquidation of Madoff’s assets is auctioning off two of the disgraced financier’s opening day tickets on EBay (EBAY). At last check, the bid was $800.
The tickets, reportedly great seats right behind home plate, are part of a season ticket package owned by Madoff which were recovered among his assets.
The proceeds of the sale will go toward repaying victims of Madoff’s massive fraud.
The trustee also plans to sell the entire season ticket package online.
In the jargon of the new Citi Field, Madoff’s seats were knows as Delta Club Platinum tickets and have a face value of $80,190. They include a parking pass.
Court papers reveal that Madoff’s Platinum tickets are being swapped for Delta Club Gold tickets located in Section 11 Row 8 Seats 5 and 6 at Citi Field, a few rows behind the Platinum seats, and will include access to the Delta Sky360 club.
The Mets have agreed to refund to the trustee the full amount of the difference between the Platinum seats and the cheaper Gold seats, or about $20,000.
The trustee says the cheaper seats will likely be easier to sell in the current down economic environment.
A hearing for the sale of the season tickets is scheduled take place April 14 in bankruptcy court in New York.
Elsewhere in Madoff-related news, the Securities and Exchange Commission made clear Wednesday that any money recovered from the sale of Madoff's assets will go to his investors rather than to the U.S. Treasury.
The SEC made the statement in papers filed Wednesday in federal court in Manhatan. The commission said some investors who fear otherwise want to force Madoff personally into bankruptcy court to recover assets.
The SEC said bankruptcy proceedings brought about by investors who lost billions of dollars to Madoff would create unnecessary confusion and cause costly and potentially wasteful litigation.
The commission said it believes the court should continue its order prohibiting the filing of a personal bankruptcy case against Madoff.
