A Manhattan federal judge on Thursday denied Bernard Madoff's request for compassionate release, all but ensuring that the architect of the largest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history would die while serving out his 150-year sentence in prison.

Madoff, now 81 years old and suffering from end-stage renal failure, in February asked U.S. District Judge Denny Chin of the Southern District of New York to approve his release from Butner Federal Medical Center in North Carolina, saying that doctors there had told him he had less than 18 months to live.

In a 16-page opinion, Chin said Thursday that Madoff's sentence, which stacked the maximum sentences for each of the 11 counts to which he pleaded guilty in 2009, was meant to reflect the "extraordinarily evil" nature of his crime, and "nothing" in the 11 years since had changed his thinking with regard to Madoff's fate.

He also cited an outpouring of letters from more than 200 of Madoff's victims, who wrote to oppose Madoff's request.

"As the recent victim letters show, many people are still suffering from Mr. Madoff's actions," Chin wrote. "I also believe that Mr. Madoff was never truly remorseful, and that he was only sorry that his life as he knew it was collapsing around him. Even at the end, he was trying to send more millions of his ill-gotten gains to family members, friends, and certain employees."

Madoff's attorney, Brandon Sample, said in a statement that Thursday's ruling reflected Chin's belief that his client was "beyond redemption," and appealed to President Donald Trump to commute his sentence.

"Our only hope now is that President Trump will show mercy to Madoff by granting a sentence commutation. We implore the President to personally consider Madoff's rapidly declining health," he said.

In his opinion, Chin laid out the history of Madoff's crimes, which caused an estimated $13 billion in financial losses, though that figure did not include additional losses that placed the actual amount around $65 billion.

In total, he said, approximately $170 billion had flowed through the primary account used to prop up the scheme, which operated for more than 20 years before it finally began to unravel as investors sought redemptions during the 2008 financial crisis.

Madoff pleaded guilty in 2009 to charges that included fraud, money laundering and perjury. His lawyers at the time had asked for a sentence of 12 years in prison.

Chin had acknowledged that his sentencing decision was "largely, if not entirely, symbolic," but felt the symbolism was important.

"In my view, Mr. Madoff's crimes were 'extraordinarily evil,' and I sentenced him accordingly," he wrote on Thursday.

According to the opinion, 500 of Madoff's victims wrote to the court following Madoff's motion for compassionate release. Of those, 96% had asked that he remain in prison.

"This was one of the most egregious financial crimes of our time. Given its length, breadth, and impact, Mr. Madoff's fraud was unprecedented," Chin said. "Although this was a financial crime, as I observed at sentencing, it was not 'bloodless.' Rather, it has taken and continues to take 'a staggering human toll,' causing heartache, despair, and even suicide."

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York declined to comment on the ruling.

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