LINDA WERTHEIMER, host: Bernard Madoff's former chief financial officer has pleaded guilty to securities fraud and other charges. Frank DiPascali Jr. told a federal judge yesterday that he helped Bernard Madoff carry out his Ponzi scheme.</s>LINDA WERTHEIMER, host: NPR's Jim Zarroli reports.</s>JIM ZARROLI: DiPascali's guilty plea represents a big potential turning point in the Madoff investigation and could well lead to charges against others who worked at the firm. For years, DiPascali worked by Madoff's side and he was intimately involved with the firm's operations. Jerry Reisman is an attorney representing Madoff victims.</s>Mr. JERRY REISMAN (Attorney): Frank DiPascali was the middle man, the contact with all of the Madoff accounts. When a Madoff account needed money, they called him. When a Madoff account wanted to do something with respect to their account, they called him.</s>JIM ZARROLI: At the same time, U.S. officials said, he helped create fake documents and computer records to conceal the fraud. Until now, Madoff has insisted that none of his relatives or coworkers were involved in the Ponzi scheme, but DiPascali told the judge he knew what he was doing was wrong, and he said others at the firm knew what was happening too. As part of his plea bargain, DiPascali has agreed to cooperate with government investigators. Under a deal with prosecutors, DiPascali was supposed to be released on bail after his plea, but in an unusual move Judge Richard Sullivan ordered him sent to jail instead, saying he represented a flight risk.</s>JIM ZARROLI: Jim Zarroli, NPR News, New York.
Frank DiPascali Jr., who played a key role in Bernard Madoff's huge Ponzi scheme, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of fraud. Sentencing isn't until May of next year, but the former chief financial officer says he will name names, which could mean less prison time and more arrests in the case.