Madoff friend Picower dies after found in pool

MIAMI (Reuters) - Palm Beach billionaire Jeffry Picower, described as the biggest beneficiary of Bernard Madoff's fraud, died on Sunday after he was found at the bottom of the pool at his mansion home, police said.

Emergency services were called to the oceanside home after Picower, 67, was pulled from the pool by his wife and a housekeeper, and he was later pronounced dead, the Palm Beach Post reported quoting police and Fire Rescue officials.

The trustee in the Madoff fraud case had said in court documents late last month that Picower, newly listed as one of the 400 wealthiest Americans by Forbes magazine, was complicit in the fraud. He was being sued for $7.2 billion.

Picower and his wife Barbara were friends of Madoff, who is serving a 150-year sentence after pleading guilty to running a $65 billion Ponzi scheme.

(Reporting by Pascal Fletcher, editing by Anthony Boadle)