Samuel Israel, Bayou Group LLC co-founder who faked his suicide and fled after pleading guilty to a $400 million fraud, according to a report by Bloomberg News, has asked a judge to release him from the federal prison complex in Butner, North Carolina claiming that he almost died after the prison authorities had failed to properly treat his medical conditions.
Back in 2008 when Samuel Israel was to report to prison to serve a 20-year sentence for the fraud charge, he faked his death by abandoning his car on a New York bridge with the words “suicide is painless” written on the windshield of the car. The former hedge fund manager is now trying to shorten his 22-year sentence or be set free, by saying his health has worsened and that the authorities can not take care of him.
Samuel Israel, 54, has alleged in papers that were filed in Manhattan federal court that he almost died of a chest infection in May 2013 as a result of neglect in North Carolina federal prison. According to Bloomberg News, Samuel Israel was sentenced to the same Federal prison complex where Bernard Madoff is also a prisoner. According to Yahoo news, U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon in Manhattan sentenced Samuel Israel to 20 years in prison for the fraud, and U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas in White Plains, New York added two years for the 2008 escapade. Israel is not eligible for release until September 12, 2027.
Reuters has reported that, Samuel Israel suffers from a degenerative spinal condition but has been refused treatment to alleviate his chronic pain. “He’s one of those people who is expensive to take care of in a humane way,” Israel’s lawyer Shane Landry, who said he last saw his client three months ago, said in an interview, according to Reuters. “Prison officials keep telling us he’s not in as much pain as he says, but I’ve seen him. He’s in pain. He has trouble getting around.” According to Bloomberg News, Samuel Israel is due to be released in September 2027.
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